Clouet said in a letter to families Monday that an incident had occurred Friday involving a bus driver employed by Landmark Transportation, the main provider of transportation services for Shelton Public Schools.
"This incident put the students on the bus in danger. Many of the students are your children!" Clouet wrote. "I, along with our school principals, our Transportation Coordinator Jim Burns, and the entire Board of Education are very upset about what happened. The driver in question will never drive in Shelton again!"
The incident occurred as schools were dismissing Friday. Several students passengers reported seeing the unnamed driver's eyes close as he drove the bus. The district and police department were both contacted.
The bus was stopped on Nichols Avenue as it headed to Mohegan School. Clouet said he stopped by the scene and was assured by an officer that all the students were safe. The driver was removed from the bus and another Landmark employee arrived to finish the bus run and take all the students home.
A district employee took the bus back to the main bus garage to meet with bus company supervisors.
"The investigation about the details of what caused the bus driver to act in an unsafe, unprofessional manner is ongoing," Clouet said. "Again, that individual is finished in Shelton."
An alert was posted to the school district website, and the principals of Shelton Intermediate School and Mohegan School reached out to parents over the weekend. Clouet said that the district would be meeting with Landmark Transportation this week to review the situation and enhance protocols to make sure a situation like this never happens again.
Clouet said more information about the incident will be shared soon.
Click here to follow Daily Voice Shelton and receive free news updates.