MILWAUKEE — Another young Milwaukee child was left unattended on a school vehicle, TMJ4 News has learned.
On Feb. 20, Milwaukee mother Beonca Bonner said her 4-year-old was left locked inside a school bus, alone, for over an hour.
READ MORE: Mother asks for accountability after 4k student was left inside locked school bus alone
It's reportedly not the first time that has happened at Milwaukee Scholars Charter School.
Kendra Coleman told TMJ4 her 7-year-old was left alone on a school transport van going to the same school.
"I feel like everything is getting swept under the rug, and nothing's been done about it," Coleman said.
On Jan. 23, Coleman's son was picked up by a van transport service hired by Milwaukee Scholars.
Watch: Mother says son with autism left alone on charter school transport van
"My child was on the van because he has an Individualized Education Program (IEP)," Coleman explained. "He's autistic, 7 years old and partly nonverbal."
Not long after the school day began, Coleman said school staff left her a voicemail saying her son was marked absent.
"So right then and there, I start panicking, saying, 'Where's my child?' because he was on the van this morning," she recalled.
After nearly an hour of trying to find out where her son was, Coleman called the school back and was told he had been found.
"Someone found him running on the street at Silver Spring and Sherman and took him to the police station. And I said, 'How did that happen?'"
The van driver reportedly did not check that all the students were off the vehicle before taking it back to his home.
Coleman's son says he was asleep in the van and woke up when he noticed the vehicle was cold and not moving.
"He said he found a way to get out of the van and started running. My child could've been hit, and then what?"
After the incident, she decided to unenroll both of her kids from the charter school.
"I would not recommend anybody put their kids in that school," Coleman told TMJ4.
TMJ4's Mariam Mackar attempted to contact the principal of the school but was told to email the school's corporate headquarters, which provided this statement:
We are grateful the student was found safe after falling asleep on the transportation vendor’s van that morning. One of the promises we make to our families is a school environment that is safe and focused on student well-being. This promise extends to our partners who support us in providing services such as transportation. Since the incident, this provider installed cameras and alarms in its vehicles to prevent this from happening again.
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