Oldham driver resigns after child is left on school bus

An Oldham County school bus driver and a monitor resigned Wednesday after an incident Monday in which a preschool-aged child with special needs was left unattended on their bus for at least three hours.

Gregory Clickner, who had been a bus driver with the Oldham County Schools since November 2012, and bus monitor Sharon Machi, who assisted Clickner on Monday, resigned Wednesday, said Tracy Harris, a spokeswoman for Oldham County Schools.

Harris said the child was taken to a hospital by the parents after the incident but was in good health Wednesday. She was unsure if the child had returned to school.

Oldham County Schools Superintendent Will Wells said Wednesday that the district is reviewing its policies and procedures to ensure the safety of its students.

“I, personally, as well as others on our staff, have expressed to the parents directly our deep concern for their child’s well-being,” he said. “We take responsibility for this error. It is unacceptable.”

About 7,000 students use the district’s bus system. All drivers and monitors receive training to inspect buses at the end of each route, Wells said, but procedures were not followed Monday.

“The driver and monitor involved in this incident are good people and good employees who made a terrible mistake that had the potential to be tragic,” he said.

The child’s father told police the special-needs bus picked up the child about 10:40 a.m. but the child wasn’t at school to be picked up shortly after 2 p.m. The child was found at the district’s bus depot at 1800 Button Lane in La Grange about 2:30 p.m., still seated in the bus.

School officials and Oldham County police continue to investigate.

Reporter Kirsten Clark can be reached at (502) 582-4144 or on Twitter by following @kirstenlmclark.