Rule 3301-83-09 | Pupil instruction.
(A) Student, parent and/or guardian school bus safety orientation program. At the beginning of each school year, school districts will:
(1) Offer opportunities for students, along with their parents or guardians, to meet their bus drivers, tour a bus and learn about school safety;
(2) Provide families with take-home materials that parents and guardians can use to encourage positive school bus behaviors;
(3) When possible, school bus safety orientations should be incorporated into existing school-required orientations, meetings or assemblies.
(B) All school districts will implement a program to provide safety instruction to all regularly transported pupils in grades kindergarten through third within two weeks after the commencement of classes each school year pursuant to section 3327.16 of the Revised Code. The program will include but not be limited to:
(1) Safe walking practices to and from the bus stop.
(2) Wearing of light-colored or reflective clothing when going to and from the bus stop in darkness.
(3) How and where to wait safely for the bus including how to avoid personal risks involving strangers.
(4) What to do if the bus is late or does not arrive.
(5) How to enter and leave the bus safely. This instruction will include the potential hazards regarding the snagging of clothing, backpacks, or other items, as well as items which may be dropped around or under the bus.
(6) Safe riding practices (including instruction on rule 3301-83-08 of the Administrative Code, pupil transportation management policies).
(7) Safely crossing the street or roadway before boarding and after leaving the bus.
(8) Respect for the rights and privileges of others.
(9) The dangers of trespassing in a railroad right-of-way and other dangerous areas.
(C) Pupils enrolled in grades four through twelve and regularly transported are to be properly instructed in safety procedures on and around the school bus.
(D) Passengers participating in nonroutine use of school buses are to receive safety instructions at the beginning of the bus trip. (This does not apply to the return portion of a round trip event.) Instruction is to include identification of safety exits, keeping aisles clear, remaining seated behind the barrier while the bus is in motion, and other rules as adopted by local policy.
(E) The procedure in paragraphs (A), (B), and (C) of this rule may need to be modified for preschool and special needs children.
Last updated July 1, 2025 at 7:49 AM
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