Following Tuesday’s story about DASH hiring policies not prohibiting sex offenders, the transit agency has placed two employees on the Virginia State Police registry on administrative leave to “assess the rigor of our recruitment standards and ensure we meet the highest standards in providing safe, fair, and accessible transit to our community.”
ALXnow looked into DASH’s hiring practices after the Alexandria School Board discussed safety concerns about a proposal to transport Alexandria City High School students on DASH buses starting next school year.
ALXnow found that DASH currently employs two sex offenders — an administrative employee and a bus driver. On Tuesday, the transit agency initially said that no drivers were registered sex offenders, but later confirmed after closer review that one of the two employees is indeed a driver.
DASH said that both employees were hired prior to 2023, and have been in good standing throughout their employment. Through May, DASH also employed a third person on the registry as an administrative employee.
DASH’s statement said:
DASH’s absolute top priority has and always will be the safety and security of our riders and workforce.
Our current hiring policy is designed to be a comprehensive, case-by-case evaluation of a prospective employee.
There are two current employees on the state registry, one of whom is a bus operator and the other a non-bus operator, both hired prior to a 2023 overhaul of our hiring policies.
We have determined that these individuals have been in good standing for the duration of their employment, however, they are now on administrative leave as we assess the rigor of our recruitment standards and ensure we meet the highest standards in providing safe, fair, and accessible transit to our community.
The transit agency said in a statement Tuesday that it performs full criminal history background checks and drug and alcohol screenings in its hiring processes, and “does not automatically disqualify candidates based solely on their past criminal history.”
The question of safety on DASH buses transporting children starting in the 2026-27 school year was raised by the School Board in a Sept. 11 work session.
As previously reported, in that meeting, School Board Vice Chair Chris Harris asked ACPS staff to clarify what the hiring standards are for Alexandria City Public Schools bus drivers versus DASH bus drivers.
ACPS Chief Operating Officer Alicia Hart said that ACPS had not discussed legal and safety measures with DASH up to that point. She also said that bus driver background checks are a high priority for the school system, since drivers primarily deal with children. She said that ACPS performs rigorous background checks on its school bus driver candidates to ensure sex offenders aren’t hired, and that they complete specialized training to work with students. Hart also said she wants there to be a similar hiring process for DASH bus drivers who will be transporting students.
“I would strongly advocate for there to be an apples-to-apples background check for the bus drivers that would be in contact with our students on a regular basis, on a mandated basis,” Hart said. “I think it is extremely important that we not only check again for general offenses, but for that sex offender piece as well, just because students of varying ages will be in contact with these drivers.”
In Virginia, a sex offender is a person who has been convicted of a sex crime requiring registration under the Virginia Sex Offender and Crimes Against Minors Registry Act. This includes a wide range of offenses, from rape and sexual battery to child pornography offenses and crimes against minors, as well as related crimes like murder and breaking and entering with the intent to commit a sex offense. The specific offenses triggering registration are detailed in Virginia Code § 9.1-902.
