District officials hopeful cameras curb bullying

By SARAH HITE shite@mydallaspost.com

State-of-the-art audio visual recording equipment was recently installed on 29 Dallas School District vehicles and the woman who brought the issue of bus bullying to the school board is looking forward to progress.

Laurie Russell, of Dallas, presented to the Dallas School Board in November about the dangers of bullies on school buses. Her concerns mostly involved elementary students – Russell has two young children and she works at Adventures in Learning Daycare in Dallas, where she has heard many complaints from students about verbal and physical exchanges on buses.

“It didn’t surprise me, but the extent of it did,” she said. “It threw me off a bit. Everybody is more vicious these days.”

Russell said she’s heard stories about children getting punched in the face and shoved on buses. She said bus drivers might not be able to handle the situation on the road because their attention is focused on driving.

The new cameras have given drivers more eyes. Three cameras equip each bus – one in the front of the bus, one in the back and one in the middle. The digital cameras, purchased through the Wolfington Body Co. in accordance with the state cooperative purchasing program, record audio and visual images and store information for up to 30 days.

“We took a look at a couple images and they are extremely clear,” said Superintendent Frank Galicki. “We saw elementary students playing with iPods and games. It was great to see the kids getting along and, hopefully, we won’t have any cases or problems with bullying.”

Both Russell and Galicki said the same thing when it comes to the effectiveness of the cameras – they help to gather the evidence of a complaint rather than a “he said, she said” type of argument that can sometimes result from bullying accusations.

“Some parents say, ‘Oh, it’s not my child,’ but now it’s right there and visible for them to see and to hear,” said Russell. “I just think as far as any parent who would be against it, they must be constantly against their child discipline-wise.”

The cameras cost the district $37,802, but most of the cost was offset by federal stimulus funds, money from a transportation account and savings the district accrued when it used outside transportation agencies.

Russell admitted she was surprised that the board took such swift action on the issue.

“I couldn’t have been more pleased with the response,” she said. “The board so quickly took action, and Mr. Galicki was keeping me posted on where they were at the whole time.”

Craig Rome, of Dallas, has three children who attend schools in the district, and he said the cameras are a great way to keep an eye on students.

“We knew they were installed,” said Rome. “I see no problem with it. I think it can only help.”

Russell said children at the daycare are also pleased with the cameras on the bus.

“They’re not saying, ‘Oh we have to ride this bus again,’ anymore,” she said. “They are aware. When they first put (the cameras) on the bus (the kids) came and told me.”

Russell said she will continue to address issues of bullying within the district, but for now she is happy to see some progress.

“I couldn’t be more pleased,” she said.