SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. – An Oviedo High School family said their child’s bus was a half-hour late this morning.
Some students reported to the Seminole County School District that the bus missed their stops.
And Claudia Xavier, mom of a new Lyman High School student, said her daughter’s bus stop disappeared and she didn’t find out about it until the day before school started.
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“My two girls now have to walk three and a half miles to the bus stop and three and a half miles back,” Xavier said. “So in the morning I can do it, I’ll drop them off at the bus. But in the afternoon who’s going to get them.”
Seminole County Schools spokesperson Michael Lawrence admitted there were some “bus hiccups” but said that’s normal on the first day and the issues would be fixed.
Lawrence said most students were wearing masks district-wide. Seminole County is requiring students to wear masks in school and on a bus unless parents opt-out with a handwritten note or, if their school provides it, with an online form.
Students at Lyman High said around half of all students were wearing masks and teachers were asking students but not checking if they had a note.
The district’s Frequently Asked Questions on masks said “every attempt will be made to ensure that the student and the student’s parents understand the importance of wearing a face covering.”
School Resource Officers will not be enforcing the mask mandate, rather administrators “will work with students and staff to encourage and ensure compliance.”