transportation

Day Care Delivers Kindergartner to Wrong School on First Day

The Childcare Network's bus driver delivered Kaydin to Sam Houston Elementary School, where a staffer found the 5-year-old alone and crying outside after all of the other kids had been escorted into the building, according to the child's father.

A North Texas day care has vowed to take "appropriate action" after a 5-year-old in its care was dropped off at the wrong school on the first day of kindergarten this week.

"I was infuriated," said Scott Johnson, the child's father. "One time is one time too many."

Johnson told NBCDFW he dropped off his son, Kaydin Johnson, at Denton's Childcare Network day care before school started Monday – his son's first day at a "big-boy school."

The day care then provides bus transportation to school, according to Johnson, for Kaydin and other school-aged children.

Kaydin lined up in the appropriate line for his bus and school Monday, but then moved into a different line for a different bus and school, according to a representative for Childcare Network.

The Childcare Network's bus driver delivered Kaydin to Sam Houston Elementary School, where a staffer found the 5-year-old alone and crying outside after all of the other kids had been escorted into the building, according to the child's father.

When the school staffer brought Kaydin to the office, the school was able to contact Childcare Network, which sent a different bus to the school in order to deliver the child to his proper place – McNair Elementary School, approximately four miles away.

Kaydin arrived at McNair at approximately 8:20 a.m. Monday – about 30 minutes late for his first day of class, according to Robert Moffett, chief development officer for the Childcare Network.

"We regret the situation that occurred," Moffett told NBCDFW. "Childcare Network prides itself on providing the safest transportation for school age children. We are reviewing the matter and will take appropriate action to ensure our transportation procedures are properly implemented."

A representative for the Denton Independent School District confirmed Wednesday that Kaydin was dropped off at the wrong school, an incident a spokesperson called a "rare occurrence."

Scott Johnson said he and his family are focused on the bright side.

"He was safe. It was taken care of [by the time I learned about the mistake] so me becoming angry would not change anything," Johnson said. "[But] that's where we decided that people needed to know, because if this happened with our child it could happen with anybody's child."

Childcare Network "self reported" the incident to the Child Care Licensing wing of the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, which regulates day cares.

There are child-care standards related to transportation and supervision, according to Marissa Gonzales of DFPS, but until an investigation is completed it would be premature to say if Childcare Network committed a violation in its error Monday.

Since the incident, the Johnson family has pulled Kaydin from Childcare Network and the day care has agreed to refund the money the family had paid for its services.

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