Transportation: Arrival & Dismissal

Transporting students in a safe and timely manner is an important part of our school district's operation.

Please closely review our arrival and dismissal procedures below to ensure the safe transport of all our students, whether coming to and from school as a car rider or on a bus.

Transportation for all K-2 students is based on the home address listed in our student database. All parents/guardians need to submit a new transportation form each school year in Final Forms to indicate daily transportation plans and different pick-up or drop-off addresses, if necessary.

Arrival & Dismissal Procedures

Bus Riders

Process & Procedures

To ensure your child’s safety, students will be issued a bus/transportation tag to wear on their backpack. They will only be permitted to ride their regularly scheduled bus home each day. Parents may only request that a student ride another bus in an emergency, such as a medical emergency that creates a scenario where no one will be home to meet the child. The request must be approved by the building administration.

Parent / Guardian Presence at Bus Stop

All bus riders MUST have a parent, guardian or another individual, as communicated to the child's bus driver, to meet the student at the bus stop when dropped off at the end of the day. Any student who doesn’t have someone meeting them will be returned to the school and the administration will contact the parents.

All attempts to reach a parent or an emergency contact will be made to come pick up the student. If no contact can be made, administration may contact the West Chester Police Department to help transport the child to their residence. If there are frequent incidents of a child being brought back to the building, a meeting with the parents and the principal may be required in order to make arrangements that will benefit the safe transition from school to home.

Car Riders

Arrival

We begin to receive students at 9:05 a.m. Please remain in your car, and have your child open the door and exit your vehicle by themselves. A staff member will be there to direct your child into the building safely.Parents who choose to drop their children off to school will drive around to the back of our building to use the rear entrance, entering at the entrance where the Creekside Car Rider sign is placed on Tylersville Road (directly beside our main campus entrance).

Dismissal

Parent pick-up begins daily at 3:45 p.m. Every student will receive a new car rider number and tag at the beginning of each school year. This tag must be placed on the front driver’s side window when picking up your child. If someone else is picking them up, they will need the car rider tag in their window. If you do not have your tag, you will be asked to drive around the building and enter the office with your photo ID to pick up your child.

Transportation Changes & Office Pick-Up Procedures

Please notify the office by 2:00 PM. if there is any change in your child’s transportation. Parents and guardians can contact the office at contactcreekside@lakotaonline.com or send a note or email that includes the name of the person granted permission to pick up their child. We will not take this request over the phone.

When picking up your child during school hours, you MUST present a valid photo ID, such as a driver’s license or state ID. You will be asked every time for this when you pick up your child. You will enter through our main office for pick-ups during the day.

You will need to contact the main office if someone other than the parent or guardian will be picking up your child.

In This Section

District Transportation Information

The role of Lakota's Transportation Department is to guarantee safe, efficient and cost-effective transportation of students to and from their schools.

Over the years, the district has worked with its contracted bus service company, Petermann, to regularly review bus routes in an effort to safely transport as many students as possible within the available budget.

Transportation Forms
Bus Safety and Procedures

Transportation Forms

Transportation for all students is based on the home address listed in our student database.

Note that all transportations forms are now online as a part of Final Forms.

Grades K-2

All parents/guardians need to submit a Transportation Form each school year (for transportation to or from a home address or to and from a different address). Early childhood schools ask that all families complete an online form (in Final Forms) to have on file, even if transportation is not needed.

Note: PreK-2 parents/guardians are required to be at the bus stop for drop off. Parents may write a letter to allow the student to get off the bus without a parent present.

Grades 3-6

By default, transportation for all eligible students is based on the home address listed in Home Access Center (HAC). All alternative transportation plans are automatically cleared at the end of each school year, so please complete the online form (in Final Forms) before each school year if you’ll require transportation to or from an address different than your home address.

Please honor the following deadlines to receive transportation for the upcoming school year, beginning on the date indicated below.

Note that this is for current families already enrolled at Lakota. New families enrolling will receive transportation information approximately 48 hours after registration is completed.

Bus information will be available to families in HAC beginning on Monday, July 25.

Form Submission Deadline	Transportation Available
Aug. 3, 2023	First day of school
After Aug. 3, 2023	Sept. 5, 2023
After Sept. 5, 2023	All forms will be processed within 48 hours.

Please DO NOT put your child on a bus or assume that the change is in effect until you have been notified of the approval. Once approved, the Transportation Department will fax the confirmation back to your child's school and you will be notified.

Bus Safety and Procedures

To ensure the safe transportation of our students, please review the Bus Safety Brochure and other important information below.

Bus Safety Brochure

Parent/Guardian Role

Transporting children is a shared responsibility between home and school. While the district is responsible for children once they board their bus, families are solely responsible for the safety and supervision of their children to and from the designated bus stop and while students wait for their bus.

Parents/guardians of preschool, kindergarten and first grade children are advised to meet and receive their children at the bus stop. Children not met by their parents/guardians will be returned to their school building.

Student Role

Family support for appropriate behaviors is essential. Parents are asked to reinforce with their children the importance of obeying the district's Student Code of Conduct and all Bus Safety Rules when riding in a school bus. Such rules ensure the safety and welfare of all riders. Thus, if a child jeopardizes everyone's safety by repeatedly violating these rules, the student may ultimately be denied the privilege of riding the bus.

How to Handle Transportation Issues

Bus routes are designed for safety and efficiency. Extended stop times impact multiple routes. We want to properly address any concerns you may have, so we please ask that you do not interrupt the bus schedule by talking directly with a driver while he or she is on the route. If a problem or concern arises related to school bus transportation, families are encouraged to write the driver a note or call (513) 755-5821 to leave a message at the Lakota Service Center. Building administrators may also assist with transportation related questions.

Consequences of Misbehavior

If a bus rider misbehaves, the following guidelines will be followed in disciplining the offender:

For a first offense, the student will be counseled by the driver as to the appropriate behavior that is expected.
If the student’s inappropriate behavior continues, the bus driver will detail the student’s actions in writing to the building administrator. The building administrator will then contact the student’s parents/guardians and explain that an official warning has been given and that further misbehavior could result in removal of the student from the bus.
If the student’s continued misbehavior warrants the bus driver submitting a second report, the student will be required to personally meet with the principal or assistant principal. Parents/Guardians may also be asked to attend this meeting.
If the student must be referred to school administrators a third time, severe disciplinary action may be taken, including suspension from riding the bus for a period of time. When a pupil’s bus privileges are suspended, the student’s parents/guardians become responsible for transporting their child to and from school.
Dangerous acts on a school bus are cause for immediate suspension from the bus.

Click here to view the Lakota bus safety brochure.

Bus Driver Training

Each driver is expected to pass all required instructional materials and to meet or exceed qualifications as outlined by local, state and federal regulations. New drivers must complete rigorous training courses through classroom and behind-the-wheel training.

The safety training program emphasizes current safety prevention tactics, proper bus inspections, student management and the extra attention our riders with special needs deserve. In order to remain qualified as one of our school bus drivers, all drivers must continue to participate in in-service trainings throughout the year.

Going above and beyond

Each year, Lakota bus drivers are well-represented at the Ohio School Bus Driver Safety ROAD-E-O competition. The annual event is open to all Ohio school bus drivers and consists of both a written test as well as an off-road driving skills test – all to promote safety, professionalism and recognition.

Over the years, Lakota drivers have done extremely well in the competition, with several drivers winning the state title.

“I’m not surprised by the success of our drivers. I often see drivers in study groups asking each other questions or practicing their off-road driving skills at 7:30 or 8 in the evening. The preparation for the event is all on their own time.”Susan Prewitt, General Manager for Petermann/Lakota

Find Your Bus Route

Attendance Zone Search

Transportation Forms & Documents

In This Section

Contact Us

WE are here to help! If you have questions regarding bus route information or the transportation of your child, please contact us.

Calls are answered in the order received. Please understand that we receive a particularly high volume of calls at the start of the school year and hold/wait times may be longer than normal.

Transportation Department
Lakota Service Center
6947 Yankee Road
Liberty Twp. OH 45011
Phone: 513-755-5821
Fax: 513-777-3114

Office Hours
5:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m.
Monday - Friday