It is no secret that the students here at Rutgers loved Stan McNeil, the inspirational LX bus driver. When the Daily Targum published story last week saying that he had resigned, students were very upset.
Rumors had been swirling about McNeil’s departure from the university. In the article, Paul Carbonari, Assistant General Manager at First Transit, the bus service Rutgers uses, explained that Stan had resigned a week earlier. The article also mentions John Karakoglou, Manager of Transit Systems for the Rutgers University Department of Transportation Services, who said, “I’m not sure, but I believe he had to resign to take care of other endeavors he wanted to do other things, I’m not sure. We definitely didn’t fire him.”
A few days later, McNeil sent an open letter to students in the form of an almost nine minute video by student Jean-Paul Isaacs. In the video he explains that the company did not like the fact that he laid his hands on a student and prayed. He says, “They didn’t want to put on my record that they fired me, they said they would put on there that I resigned.” The video currently has over 20,000 views on YouTube.
Students were outraged at the company and started a petition to get the beloved driver his job back. A petition on Change.org currently has over 6,400 signatures in support.
The company then explained that after a full internal review, McNeil failed to properly secure a woman’s wheelchair which was grounds for termination. In an email statement to the Targum, First Transit Spokeswoman Stephanie Creech said, “All of our vehicle operators are instructed, ‘If it can’t be done safely, don’t do it.’”
McNeil says he would never leave without letting the students know what was happening. “I want you to know that you mean so much to me. You students mean so much to me. You’re really like an extended family to me.”
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