Parents push to reinstate bus driver removed after kitten rescue

Bryna Zumer, Baltimore Sun on Oct 9, 2026

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BALTIMORE — When 10-year-old Alex Thomas spotted a tiny kitten on the side of Heaps School Road last week, his bus driver, Cynthia Morgan, pulled over on the rural road and told him to go get it. Alex, the only child on the bus, held the kitten all the way to North Harford Elementary School, then left it with Morgan.

Soon after, Harford County Public Schools told Morgan she could no longer work as a bus driver, she said. Now parents are petitioning to get her back, praising her as a deeply caring driver who regularly goes out of her way for children and their families, buying them holiday presents and school supplies.

Taffy Thomas, Alex’s mother, said she is “100% behind” Morgan and is unhappy the driver was dismissed.

Alex “would have been devastated to leave that (kitten) behind,” Thomas said. “The fact that she was let go because of an act of kindness does really weigh on him. That is unforgivable and cruel.”

Carolyn Kalambihis, whose three children Morgan has driven to North Harford Elementary for the past five years, also fully supports Morgan.

“She has been nothing short of an angel to all the kids on the bus,” Kalambihis said. “She is a very compassionate woman, and if anything, that (kitten rescue) shows the kids what a compassionate woman she is, not just to other kids but to animals.”

More than 630 people had signed a Change.org petition calling for Morgan’s reinstatement as a North Harford bus driver as of Thursday afternoon.

Harford County Public Schools spokesperson Jillian Lader said via email that the school system “cannot discuss or disclose information regarding the certification status of individual school bus drivers or attendants. In addition, the driver referenced is not an employee of HCPS, but an employee of an HCPS contracted school bus contractor.”

Morgan, 67, said she’s been a bus driver for the school system for 11 years, and for contractor Cleary Transportation Inc., for about seven years.

Morgan, meanwhile, said she was shocked by the dismissal. She shared an Oct. 5 letter she received from Danielle Bedsaul, HCPS’ transportation director, to Cleary Transportation, the contractor Morgan drove for. The letter cites “multiple incidents” involving Morgan, including “concerns regarding inappropriate interactions with students.”

According to the letter, a review of bus video confirmed that Morgan let a student get off the bus to retrieve a cat from the road and allowed the animal to stay on board for the rest of the route. After dropping students off at school, Morgan drove with the cat on her lap, the letter said. Bedsaul wrote that in a meeting with HCPS, Morgan maintained she had not put the student at risk and defended her actions.

Lader said: “HCPS is responsible for certifying individuals to safely transport students on behalf of the school system. Decisions regarding the certification or decertification of school bus drivers and attendants are made only after careful review of all relevant information and in accordance with COMAR regulations, safety requirements, and established practices. Certification and decertification are not always based on a single factor but often involve consideration of multiple circumstances and requirements.”

Lader added: “Student safety remains our top priority, and all certification decisions are made with that responsibility in mind.”

Cleary Transportation referred questions regarding Morgan to the school system.

Kalambihis said she understands the school system and Department of Transportation have policies in place for a reason, but “it just seems like they could have handled this in a different manner.”

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