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Parents, student tell Oyster River board smoke on Route 20 bus prompted call to update district policies
Summary
Parents and a middle‑school student told the Jan. 21 school board the Route 20 bus has reeked of cigarette smoke since an October driver change and asked the district to tighten staff dress‑code and tobacco policies to reduce third‑hand smoke exposure.
Several residents asked the Oyster River Coop School District board on Jan. 21 to address what they described as persistent cigarette smell on Route 20 and to update district policy to reduce third‑hand smoke exposure for students.
Tom Daly of Durham told the board that after a driver change in October 2025 his children complained of headaches and nausea on the Route 20 bus. "After a week of rides with the new driver, my children began to complain of headaches and nausea when riding the bus," Daly said, and described the odor as "distinctly of cigarette smoke." He urged the board to expand policy GB EBA (staff dress code) and to review policies JICA and ADC to mitigate third‑hand smoke risks.
An eighth‑grade student, Grace, corroborated the daily exposure. "Each day, my first interaction with Oyster River begins with a cigarette smoke smelling bus ride to school," she said, asking the board for a "thoughtful policy update."
In response board members and administrators reiterated that smoking is not permitted on school grounds or in district transportation when students are present. Policy committee members said there are legal limits to how far a staff dress code can reach into employees’ off‑duty behavior but pledged to review existing policies and cross references (GB EBA, ADC, JICA) as part of the committee’s first‑read work.
The policy committee is moving GBE, GBEBA, GBGA and GBI to first read and proposed deleting GCQ; the committee discussion included questions about enforceability (for instance, what constitutes a "safety hazard" under dress‑code language) and how to address exposure risks that originate from employees’ clothing or vehicles.
The board did not take formal action to change the policies at the Jan. 21 meeting; the proposals remain at first read and will return for subsequent consideration and possible revision.
Next steps: The policy committee will refine language and cross‑references and return the policies for a second reading; parents who raised the issue asked the board to consider whether dress‑code language and tobacco‑use policies sufficiently address third‑hand smoke risk.
