MONROE COUNTY, Tenn. — On Thursday, the Monroe County Board of Education held its usual meeting. This time though, several parents attended hoping they would address issues related to a lack of school bus routes. While there were some more bus contracts awarded, some routes still did not have drivers.
"Yesterday I get a phone call saying there was no bus, and my daughter was still at school with no way to get home at all," said one parent who attended the meeting.
Parents said they felt the issue was not addressed at Thursday's meeting. Some said they left hoping it would be addressed at the next meeting.
Until then, they said some parents were banding together to help each other as much as possible. Some started carpooling to make sure everyone got to school safely, and back home at the end of the day.
Last week, the school system warned parents they would need to find alternative transportation if their students' bus routes weren't covered, and students would be marked absent if they did not show up to school due to a lack of transportation.
The issue dates back several months, as controversy erupted after the school board announced changes to the way they paid bus contractors. However, Monroe County Schools said on July 29 that most of the issues with covering routes are now due to bus driver shortages, not contract negotiations.