Cell Phones Left On Tennessee School Buses Causing Concerns For Bus Drivers, School Officials

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The Tennessee Conservative [By David Seal] –

With many students attending school with smartphones, the likelihood of a phone being occasionally misplaced or left behind on a school bus is to be expected. From time to time, adults leave their glasses, a purse, or wallet in a restaurant and wonder where they left the item. 

It happens to the best of us. 

A handful of school systems are seeing a trend of parents, and even upper grade students, using the GPS function of a smartphone as a means of locating the wayward phone and then showing up at a bus driver’s home unannounced to retrieve the lost phone.

This is causing concerns for school systems and bus drivers alike.

Rutherford County Schools have communicated a plan of action to their bus rider families that serve as a good model for other school systems to follow. Chief Communications Officer James Evans issued the following statement.

“Parents of RCS bus riders,

We would like to ask for your assistance with an issue we have experienced with some smart phones on buses. It has not been a widespread issue, but there have been some incidents reported. 

If your child accidentally leaves their smartphone on a school bus, please do not track the phone and then go to the home of the bus owner to retrieve the phone. We have had a few scattered reports of this happening, and our bus owners are concerned about parents coming to their homes. 

If your child leaves their phone on a school bus, please notify the school the next day and the school will work with the bus driver to help recover the phone.

Thank you for your attention to this matter.”

About the Author: David Seal is a retired Jefferson County educator, recognized artist, local businessman, 917 Society Volunteer, and current Chairman of the Jefferson County Republican Party. He has also served Jefferson County as a County Commissioner and is a citizen lobbyist for the people on issues such as eminent domain, property rights, education, and broadband accessibility on the state level. David is also a 2024 winner of The Tennessee Conservative Flame Award & has received an accolade from the Institute For Justice for successfully lobbing the TN legislature to protect property rights. David can be reached at david@tennesseeconservativenews.com.