LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A Louisville lawyer who is suing to prevent Jefferson County Public School’s new busing plan from taking effect, has now filed a temporary restraining order against the district.
Teddy Gordon, who’s taken the district to court several times over the years, filed the order against JCPS Wednesday evening. It also adds two additional plaintiffs who are parents of students affected by the busing plan changes.
“We have asked that the current student assignment plan not go into effect on August 8th,” Gordon said.
Should a judge grant this restraining order, it would have a significant impact on the start of school in August.
A TRO acts as its name signals, short-term relief that prevents JCPS from implementing its new transportation plan. It would remain in effect until the lawsuit is settled. The defendant, JPCS in this case, could appeal the order if granted.
“As far as I’m concerned, it’s an absolute violation of their civil rights to not allow them to go back to the magnet, traditional schools that they were going to,” Gordon stated.
This development comes after Gordon filed his initial suit last month, which alleges the actions of JCPS “created disproportionate and disparate treatment” of the children mentioned in the suit, and similarly situated African American students who cannot afford private transportation.
The June lawsuit says JCPS’ decision to end busing will “intentionally cause high schools in lower socio-economic neighborhoods to become overcrowded havens for violence and cause abysmal educational outcomes to become even worse.”
“Nobody has to go to their senior year at Valley when they were going to Male,” Gordon explained. “That same individual, which is one of the new plaintiffs, at Male (the student) has a 70% chance of graduating from a four-year college, if he comes out at Male. At Valley (it’s) 15%.”
Carolyn Callahan, a spokesperson for JCPS, told Spectrum News regarding the filing, “At this point, our legal team has not received the order and therefore has not reviewed it.”
The district is reworking how it gets kids to school as it deals with a bus driver shortage.
On April 10, the JCPS school board voted 4-3 to cut transportation to all magnet and traditional schools except two, eliminating previously provided transportation for around 16,000 students.
“Let’s just go back to what worked last year and be in the start,” Gordon said. “And let’s not discriminate against anybody.”
In 2023, the start of the school year was put on pause for over a week after substantial bus delays on the first day saw some kids not be dropped off until nearly 10 p.m.