Special-needs student left on school bus

A Crystal Lake family got a scare when their special-needs kindergartner was left alone on a school bus for at least an hour Tuesday morning.

Alicia Wrona put her son, Matthew, on the bus around 8:03 a.m. Tuesday, police said. She thought he had arrived at school OK until she got a call from West Elementary around 10 a.m.

"They said he was marked 'absent,'" Wrona said. She said she told the school, "I put him on the bus and he better be at school."

When school administrators were unable to find her son at the school, "I about had a heart attack," Wrona said.

In the next half hour, the school called back. Matthew's bus driver had found him. He was still strapped to his seat on the bus -- which was parked at the bus driver's Lake in the Hills home.

The bus driver had completed her route, dropping off Matthew's classmates at school and returning home, where she parked her bus around 9 a.m., police said.

Matthew has a neurological disorder that impairs his ability to speak. He communicates using sign language.

"He seems to be relatively OK, but he's very clingy," Wrona said. "He's not real happy about being near the bus today."

The driver, 28-year-old Marci J. Zavala of 3050 Ronan Drive, was arrested and charged with reckless conduct, a misdemeanor.

Zavala was released after posting $100 bond.

Ron Erdmann, executive director of the agency that runs transportation for Crystal Lake Districts 47 and 155, wouldn't comment on Zavala's employment status.

"We have zero tolerance for students left on the bus," Erdmann said.

Matthew's mother said she'll be driving him to school for the rest of the year. His last day is Monday.