Williamsburg County school bus drivers reinstated

GREELEYVILLE — Eighteen suspended bus drivers will soon be on the roads again for the Williamsburg County School District.

At a meeting Monday, the district’s board of trustees accepted an administrative recommendation to lift the suspensions of those drivers who failed to transport children in a “timely manner” Oct. 30, causing confusion district-wide.

According to a statement read at the meeting’s conclusion by board chairman, the Rev. Norman Gamble, drivers will be permitted to return to work, provided they fulfill certain obligations laid out by the district. Those include participating in “mandatory professional development approved by the administration,” as well as signing “an acknowledgment that any further rules, violations or infractions may be grounds for future disciplinary actions up to and including termination.”

Gamble said the drivers already attended one counseling session and will be placed on a 60-day probation. A district spokesman later said counseling sessions were done on an individual basis. While the details of what those sessions entailed were not revealed by the district, the spokesman said further professional development will serve to review the duties and responsibilities of the drivers.

Initially, 20 bus drivers were suspended. A district spokesman said two drivers who were originally suspended were later found to have not participated in the Oct. 30 incident.