Attacks on school bus rattle parents

Bus from Nathanael Greene first boarded, then jostled by group of youths

01:00 AM EST on Wednesday, January 18, 2006
BY LINDA BORG
Journal Staff Writer

PROVIDENCE -- Two dozen parents packed the library at Nathanael Greene Middle School last night to find out what school officials are doing in the wake of two assaults last week on a middle school bus.

On Monday last week, at least two students stopped and boarded a bus on its way from Nathanael Greene to the East Side. As the bus was heading down Branch Avenue, the youths opened the emergency door, punched a middle school child, then fled as the bus driver tried to grab them, according to school officials. Some parents had heard that one of the youths tried to commandeer the bus, but school officials couldn't confirm that.

The next day, a group of teenagers surrounded the bus, also on Branch Avenue, and began pounding on it as it was driving children home. The size of the group varies, depending on the witnesses. One child reported seeing 40 teens attack the bus; school officials say the crowd was much smaller.

Adding to the confusion, a brawl involving dozens of teenagers broke out in front of the Brooks drugstore on Branch Avenue last week, and Nathanael Greene students on the same bus witnessed the incident; some thought it was aimed at their bus. Sgt. Kevin Lanni said that two youths have been arrested on charges related to the fight outside of the Brooks drugstore.

As the story of the attacks spread, parents became upset that the school wasn't giving them any answers. (Principal Nick Amaral sent a letter to parents on Friday describing what had happened and what the school was doing to prevent the incidents from occurring again.)

Last night, the leaders of the Parent Teacher Organization invited school officials to explain what steps they were taking to protect the children.
But school officials didn't appear to be on the same page. Amaral said that the bus driver couldn't identify the perpetrators, but Deputy School Supt. Frances Gallo said four youths had been identified.

She said the ringleader is a former Nathanael Greene student who has a grudge against the bus driver because he was allegedly involved in her expulsion from Greene. According to Gallo, the girl planned the incident and persuaded two boys from Hopkins Middle School to board the bus.

The girl is in the custody of the Department of Children, Youth and Families, and is being held at the Rhode Island Training School.

The two middle school boys have been suspended pending a disciplinary hearing. A fourth student has been identified, but he no longer attends public school. He attends a privately run school for students who have been expelled from public school.

Last night, school officials said they were taking all three incidents very seriously. A school bus monitor has been temporarily assigned to Bus 81, and an unmarked police car follows the bus on its way home from school. In addition, the Police Department has beefed up patrols in the North End and assigned undercover officers to monitor the neighborhood.

Although the parents last night sounded calm, they were concerned that school officials get to the bottom of the violence. One parent wanted to know what Hopkins Middle School was doing to deal with the issue. Another asked whether closed-circuit cameras could be installed on the bus to record any future incidents, and a couple of parents wanted to know why the bus route couldn't be changed.
Gallo said she would ask the director of transportation to meet with middle school parents to discuss the busing issue.

Then, a middle school boy who witnessed the attacks spoke up:
"Every time they attack the bus, there are 40 kids at least," he said. "If there are real cops in the area, wouldn't that make these kids avoid the area?"
Lanni said the department has assigned marked and unmarked cruisers to the neighborhood.

"Why don't we use this as a teachable moment about how to process these emotions, this fear?" said Karina Lutz, whose daughter attends Greene. "I asked my daughter if she wanted me to drive her to school and she said no, because she didn't want them to win."

Gallo cautioned parents to keep these incidents, terrifying as they might seem, in perspective.

"It's not one school against another," she said. "I don't want it to become that. This young lady carries a lot of baggage. It's a shame that one individual could coerce others. We need to work on this as a school, as a family and as a community."
Amaral said he would speak to the children on Bus 81 today to see how they are feeling and answer questions they might have.
"What can we do as parents?" one parent said.

"Talk to your kids," Gallo said. "Tell them to report any rumors."