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Parent tells Westlake Board child left on unairconditioned bus to Camp Imagine; board president pledges follow-up
Summary
At a Westlake Board of Education meeting a parent described a transportation failure to Camp Imagine — a child not picked up, a broken air conditioner on a bus in extreme heat and no aide provided — and said no board member followed up; the board president said the matter would be followed up.
A parent told the Westlake Board of Education on June 24 that her son was not picked up on the first day of Camp Imagine and that the bus assigned had no air conditioning during a heat index above 100 degrees. Megan Notaradino, 1400 East Melrose Drive, said her son Nicholas, a student with intellectual disabilities, was left on the bus with more than 10 other children who “all of whom struggle with communication” while the driver navigated the route. She said the air conditioning was fixed the next day but, to her knowledge, “no aide was ever hired.” “Not 1 member of this board of education reached out to me to follow-up,” Notaradino said, adding that in seven years her family has not experienced as many issues as in the past year and that she had not been contacted by educational services staff. Board President said the follow-up was the president’s responsibility and promised a conversation: “That’s on me as board president, and, we’ll have a follow-up conversation.” Nut graf: The public comment raised student safety and special-education oversight concerns tied to transportation for district summer programs. The parent asked the board to review follow-up practices and communications with families of students with disabilities. The parent said she contacted the superintendent and administrators by email on June 24 and that Dr. Goggin followed up the next day; Notaradino said she nonetheless chose to drive her son to camp for the remainder of the summer because she did not feel comfortable with him on the bus. During the public comment period the board reminded speakers of the three-minute time limit and that the board does not engage in public debate on individual student matters during the meeting. No formal action on transportation was recorded in the meeting minutes provided. The transcript shows the board president acknowledged the complaint and committed to follow-up; no board member reported having individually contacted the parent before the meeting. Ending: The parent urged the board to “take action to follow-up with parents' concerns and to abide by our students with intellectual disabilities.” The board president’s pledge for follow-up provides a next step; the transcript contains no further public record of corrective measures or a staff report at this meeting.
