Well, I waited at the school for 30 min this morning for the principal, but he was in a meeting. I had to get to work, so I left the letter and a few photos and a business card and he called me a short time later. This is what happened:
DD's bus was late... it was not at the school, so he went into his office to make some calls and find out where the bus was (It was late because the driver was dropping off the middle school kids, discovered the flooded street, the flood signs ahd not been put out yet. She had to backtrack 5 miles and start her route from there.) The principal asked the Yard Duty to watch the kids while he tracked down the bus. In the mean time, the bus showed up, would not allow DD on so she told the duty she was going to ride her scooter home. The Duty told her to go slow due to the terrible weather, and she let her go! The principal said he never would have allowed this, and he was not aware that Olivia did not go on the bus.
I asked who the duty was, thinking it must have been someone who thought we lived nearby. Turns out I know the Duty and has been to my house more than once. I don't know what she was thinking. Maybe she just was not thinking. I've had run-ins with her in the past though - only person at the school I have ever had issues with.
Her son and my son are the same age, and 4 years ago she screamed at my son while he waited in the bus line and told him he needs to buy her son a new pair of $320 glasses because she claimed he tripped her son. (she was not an employee of the school at the time). My daughter witnessed the incident with the mom at the bus line, as did a parent who called to tell me about it within minutes of the incident. I called the teacher to ask if the boys were having trouble in class and asked if she noticed any aggression in Alex. Turns out, not only were the boys having trouble in class,but she winessed the incident where the glasses broke. The Duty's son and another boy sat down at a table with Alex at lunch and taunted him repeatedly until Alex got up, threw his lunch away and ran out of the building. The 2 boys followed and continued teasing (Alex has HF autism, very much like Aspergers Syndrome). When Alex ran out of the building, he tried holding the door shut with his foot, but the 2 boys pushed through tripping over Alex's leg. The boys were reprimanded at the time (but not Alex). I called the mom and told her if she had an issue to please call me directly, and not to scream at Alex like she did. I told her Alex's side of the story and said I would be willing to pay half for the glasses as he should not have blocked the door. I also asked her to confirm the story with the teacher. The teacher met with each of us separately and she told me that the boy frequently picked on and teased my son. My son for the most part ignores him, but sometimes he reacts. (since Alex has been very young, I stresseed that it is NEVER okay for him to push or hit because of the huge advantage of his height and size, he could really hurt someone and be labeled as a bully since he is different). The future school Duty never called me back for half the eyeglass $, but I always felt a cold resentment from her. I was PTA treasurer the next year and I didn't like the iciness, so I tried to improve the relationship. I don't want our sons interacting, but I wanted her to know I had no hard feeling toward her. She had a catalog party sales business at the time, so I bought some stuff from her on a couple of occasions as a peace offering, and she delivered them to my home (she'd just drop them off at my porch and call later to tell me she had been there).
Anyways, I'm hoping it was just absent-mindedness that she allowed DD to go home by herself, and not that she's still carrying a grudge.
