Smile, kids, you're on school bus camera

Halifax Elementary pupils know better than to embellish details about scuffles or other misbehavior on the school bus. All principal Diane Biggieri has to do is check the video surveillance camera mounted at the front of the bus to find out what really happened.

"It's no longer 'he said, she said,' " Biggieri said. Case in point: When a pupil reported being "beaten up," a review of the tape showed nothing more than poking. And the cameras deter bullying, she said.

All the buses in the Silver Lake Regional system, which includes Halifax, Kingston, and Plympton schools, are equipped with cameras that roll as soon as the buses do. Also among the camera-equipped: the Middleborough and Plymouth school systems, and the Bridgewater-Raynham and Whitman-Hanson regional school districts.

The Pembroke School District just introduced cameras on its 26 buses. "We haven't had any concerns expressed by parents over the cameras," Superintendent Frank Hackett said.

The cameras already proved helpful in an incident involving older students, he said. "There was physical contact and we had to take disciplinary action, so it was helpful to have the film."

It's probably no surprise to educators that some students believe the cameras violate their privacy.

"I say get rid of them. . . . It's a matter of privacy," said a Silver Lake Regional High School student who was among those gathered across the street after dismissal one recent day. Several others echoed that view, saying the cameras were ineffective or a violation of their rights.

But others said the cameras are useful. After all, said one, students rarely listen when the bus driver shouts, and the camera prevents some students from acting up. "If it's just the bus driver, they don't care, but they don't want to have to go to the principal," said one junior high student.

Students who object to the cameras don't get much sympathy from the American Civil Liberties Union. ACLU staff attorney Sarah Wunsch said her organization does not object to cameras filming on school buses. "I think that's a place where there is a special need," Wunsch said. "It's public. It's not a place where kids expect privacy. The kids might not like it, but the ACLU is not going to object to it."

And parents apparently are not objecting. "Kids may say they hate it, but as a parent, I have no problem with it," said Laurie Maker, a member of the Halifax Elementary School Committee. Students initially may be a little intimidated by the cameras, she said, but they get used to it.

The cameras record on standard VHS tapes. "The images are very clear, so you can ID the kids clearly, and who was sitting around them," Biggieri said. "You really can get to the bottom of the incident, and the tapes are digitally timed so you can get the exact moment of the problem."

To protect families' privacy, only Biggieri and the assistant principal view the tapes. Early on, a couple of parents requested a look at the video, but Biggieri would not allow it. "They would be looking at other children as well as their own," she said. "They were very understanding."

When Bridgewater-Raynham officials considered camera surveillance on school buses, there initially was some discomfort over possible invasion-of-privacy issues. But safety concerns were the greater priority, according to Superintendent George Guasconi.

"Each bus is equipped with a camera box," he said. "If the bus company, the driver, or the building administrator believes the camera is needed, one is utilized. It is at our discretion."

It is not evident whether a camera is in the box, which is installed at the front of each bus. "As far as the students are concerned, the camera could be running at any time, so they are a great deterrent," Guasconi said.

Both Guasconi and Silver Lake Regional Superintendent John Tuffy said the cameras are more necessary for elementary and middle school buses. There are fewer problems on high school runs, they said.

Why use cameras at all? "It was a concern we had with bullying issues on the buses, kids pushing and shoving and not acting the way we'd like," Tuffy said.

The Whitman-Hanson district's head of security, Bill Sweeney, said the videotape has caught many a pugilist in action. "It helps sort out the fights," he said. "You can see who threw the first punch."

A viewer can also, in some situations, read lips.

While it isn't legal to record voices, Sweeney said tapes recently were viewed after an accusation of a slur came up.

"Once you knew what the student was accused of saying, you could actually read their lips," Sweeney said. "It's powerful when the kids see it. It works well to resolve issues."

School officials in Carver and Rockland say they don't believe cameras are necessary on their buses.

"We haven't gotten there yet," said Matthew Gillis, Carver's transportation and finance director. "The students are pretty well-behaved."

Rockland Superintendent John Retchless, who has been on the job for about six weeks, said the town's school buses aren't equipped with cameras, and "nothing has been brought to our attention that this is a problem."

Jocelyn Meek, spokeswoman for the Brockton schools, said the district's buses are not equipped with cameras on a regular basis, "but we can put a camera in if there's a problem."

Middleborough's buses have been equipped with camera boxes for years, according to Thomas Tatro, the district's director of business and finance.

"I'm surprised," he said, "that there are still school districts that don't have cameras on their buses."

Christine Wallgren can be reached at CLWallgren@aol.com.