A Maryland mother went all the way to the governor's office to get help after her son went through years of being bullied on the school bus -- and on Thursday, she got a response that's giving them hope.
Fifteen-year-old Taylor Gethers attends the Children's Guild in Chillum, a school for students with special education needs.
"My favorite subject is learning," he said, showing off certificates of his achievements.
His mom, Jackie Maxfield, said that while she's happy with the education her son receives, the hour and a half on the school bus tends to negate the positive, she told News4's Derrick Ward.
His achievements are impressive, Maxfeld said, not because of Taylor's challenges, but because of his bus ride home.
She holds up one certificate dated Sept. 21, 2012 -- the same day he was beaten up on the bus.
"My son came home because he got jumped, the whole bus jumped him....," she said. "These are kids with special needs, so some of these kids don't understand.... So they jumped him, hit him in the head with bottles and stuff."
She has pages and pages of documentation that includes photos of the bloody lip he came home with one day, to a more recent black eye.
While Maxfield can't get access to the bus' security video, she said the principal has seen it. An adult attendant is supposed to monitor the kids -- but that hasn't worked out so well.
"He said the attendant would look back [at them], and then when she turned back around, they would come up and beat him again," Maxfield said.
After five or six years of seeing Taylor targeted, Maxfield wrote to the governor's office and was referred to Board of Education.
A response came back Thursday that validated the family's concern. Meetings have been scheduled, and plans are in place to find chaperones for the bus.
"I'm saying that children should feel safe on the bus," Maxfield said.
Taylor said he's hopeful. "Some people can change," he said.
Maxfield said she wanted to make sure no other parents or children have to go through what they've experienced.
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