Overview of School News
February 6, 2012
by Christine Yeres
• Whether to add a “Third Strategic Question”
• CEFF Knowledge Cafe rescheduled for Wed., April 25
• Parent permission slip and driving form for Saturday, February 11 Winter Dance
• Parents of Seven Bridge student struck by truck sue driver, CCSD, Town and County
• CEFF Knowledge Cafe re-scheduled for Wednesday, April 25
According to David Hayes, Public Information Office for CCSD, the Knowledge Café being facilitated by the members of the Chappaqua Education For the Future (CEFF) committee scheduled for February 15 has been rescheduled for Wednesday, April 25 “so the CEFF committee has more time to plan and prepare.”
The CEFF committee has identified three ideas for moving the district forward that will become its focus. This Knowledge Café will engage the community in a larger discussion of these ideas:
1) Pursue a paradigm shift toward a focus on 21st century skills
2) Foster risk-taking and creativity…value process and product
3) Establish practices to enhance the social and emotional health of students [In its January 31 meeting, board of ed members will discuss whether to adopted a Third Strategic Question on this subject. See Whether to specify “social-emotional-physical well-being” as a third “Strategic Question,” in today’s NCNOW.org.
• Parent permission slip and driving form for Saturday, February 11 Winter Dance
To enter the Saturday, February 11 high school “Winter Whiteout Dance,” Greeley students-only (no guests allowed) must have pre-purchased tickets signed by a parent. According the the “Rules and Expectations” set out in the driving permission form, “students may not walk to or from the dance and may not arrive or leave by taxi.” The rules also warn of suspension from school—“including extracurricular activities and athletics” for students who are “found to be in possession of or under the influence of alcohol or another substance”—as well as being “barred from attending future school events.”
The form advises that parents and students “read and discuss [the Rules and Expectations] together.” The $15 tickets will be on sale in the HGHS cafeteria through Thursday, February 9.
• Parents of Seven Bridge student struck by truck sue driver, CCSD, Town and County
According to a report by Elizabeth Ganga in yesterday’s Journal News, the parents of the student (age 14 at the time) struck by a truck on his way to Seven Bridges school filed suit in November in State Supreme Court in White Plains against the truck driver, the school district, the town and county, “saying that the governments,” according to Ganga, “all had a duty to provide safe routes to school and to install traffic-control devices and a crosswalk.”
In her article, Ganga writes, “the lawsuit argues that the school district should have known that [the student, who lives nearby] and other students walk to school. The lawsuit says neither the children nor their parents were ever told not to walk.”
In recent a “Knowledge Cafe” discussion of the budget, several parent participants suggested that, to save money, busing routes be changed to enlarge the area surrounding each school that is not provided bus pick-up because distances are considered walkable. At that time, Chow noted that although the three elementaries, Bell and Greeley all have such areas designated as too-close-for-bus-service, in the case of Seven Bridges there is no area exempt from bus service.
According to Ganga, the police determined at the time that the truck driver was traveling south on Seven Bridges Road “below the speed limit and was not at fault.” The student was, she wrote, “carrying a lacrosse stick and wearing earphones, ran out from behind a stopped SUV and was hit by the truck. He was thrown into a guide rail and a stone wall on the side of the road.” His was transported to the hospital with a fractured skull.
• Open Season for Chappaqua Continuing Education Spring Classes
Chappaqa Continuing Ed brochure for Spring Classes is now available online. Click HERE to download it from CCSD’s website.
I find it interesting that the school district would take a position that walking to Seven Bridges school is not allowed, given the fact that a public bus stop was located for decades at the corner of Seven Bridges and Rt 133. This stop was removed only recently due to budget cut backs by the county gov’t and not a decision based on the safety of the road way. The only way an individual would have access to that public bus stop was to walk there. A rider getting off at that stop would become a pedestrian. The town was aware of this stop as was the dis’t, if it was not considered to be a safe pedestrian access stop, why did the town allow it to exist in the first place?
How does the school district escape responsibility to provide for the safety of students on a road way that for decades been considered a pedestrian access road by the county gov’t?
This student would have walked right past the pedestrian access bus stop that existed for years! I have often pasted this stop myself on the way to Millwood and have seen day works,maids and child care workers waiting for the bus.
The school dist. provides both stop lights and painted road way indicators at the Bell Middle school.
Why wouldn’t the dist. provide safety measures for students at Seven Bridges that were provided for Bell students?
Dist. and town officials were well aware there was access to public transportation on the corner this young man traversed well before the new school was built.
My children attended this school and we never received notice the road was banned, it was widely know that many children who lived in the area walked this route regularly.
I consider this a serious lack of concern for the children’s safety by failing to provide reasonable safety measures for one school and not the other.
This article implies it was the students fault by carrying a lacrosse stick and wearing headphones and indicating the driver was going slow at that time.
Despite these facts, all parents are aware that students carry equipment to school and can be distracted, that is why we rely on the supervisors in the district and the town to be more aware and provide reasonable safety measures for our children.
Safety has been lacking at Seven Bridges far to long!
Excuses after a serious accident are unacceptable!
There are a lot of jurisdictional issues being raised in By Taxpayer’s letter. To the best of my knowledge, school districts are not responsible for county roads or bus routes, and my understanding is that the road in question is not a town road but a county road. I think it’s important to understand where the actual potential liability lies instead of castigating everyone who has been sued. Many times multiple parties are sued but not all are liable. A jury will also be asked to consider whether the actions of the student pedestrian and his parents contributed to the accident, and whether they assumed the risk of walking on a heavily trafficked road with no sidewalk and no crossing guard. To conclude that the parties to the lawsuit are or are not at fault without reference to their duties as a matter of law is a mistake that we should all try to avoid, especially since we do not know at this time which governmental entity is actually responsible for this road.
My children have often walked to friends homes from Seven Bridges. I have seen parents walking students home and parents who are attorney’s and physicians allowing their children to take this route as well. I have never seen a posting on this road by the school, or town prohibiting foot traffic. I would not think that so many who traveled this road would do so in defiance of known information, but rather there was little or no effort given to the safety of students.
There is much more awareness from the road that there is a school and therefore school children at Bell than is given at Seven Bridges.
I am concerned the District has lapsed in it’s responsibility and do feel slighted that not enough is done at Seven Bridges for my children’s safety.
Full bus service to Seven Bridges—obviously not used.
Beyond foregoing available bus service, a 14 year old, middle school student reportedly walks along road with earphones—hey, folks, teach your children well.
Despite foregoing available bus service and walking along the roadside with earphones, a 14 year old, middle school student reportedly runs out into the road from behind a stopped vehicle—see above.
The fact that there is a school on the road is posted. The absence of sidewalks is open and obvious, but it also had nothing to do with this incident. A 14 year old, middle school student, who did not take the bus and stuck earphones on, ran out into moving traffic from behind a parked car. It is horrible what happened to this young man. Safety begins at home.
Finally - Blackacre - you are correct. The school should not have “known” that students are walking to school when a bus is provided for every student. They provide a bus for a reason, and it is no way the school or towns responsibility to post a sign saying don’t walk on this road. Anyone who lives in chappaqua knows that roads here are narrow and dangerous for walking.
This family should teach their son to cross the street safely and teach him to be responsible for his actions, not to sue everyone in sight when he makes a mistake. Most important they should be thankful that he recovered. Please stop blaming others.
Kudos to Blackacre and Be Responsible. They are absolutely correct. This was a tragic acccident but it was just that an ACCIDENT. The district should not be on the hook for big bucks because of the choices of a 14 year old who just wasn’t paying enough attention to what he was doing. The town, the driver and the district were not at fault. The road by 7B is not a safe road to walk along and any adult can see that. Tell your children to take the bus. Another example of our litigious society.
I too find the whole situation a tragic accident. But I can put myself in the kid’s shoes. I live within walking distance from the Seven Bridges but I took the bus to school and back home EVERYDAY for four straight years. You want to know why? Because idling every morning in a car is environmentally unfriendly and walking is just plain dangerous. This lawsuit is just a cover-up for poor parenting.
Even if my parents agreed to let me walk to school they would make sure I would be doing so in the safest manner possible. He was “wearing earphones and ran out from behind a stopped SUV.” My parents would be appalled and would blame the accident on me if I did this. Suing the school? Forget about it. But I guess it would be typical for the type of parent to let their child walk to school on a dangerous road to also sue a school to supplant the blame.
