A Colorado school district has settled with the families of 10 students after a former paraprofessional was convicted of abusing autistic children.

Tyler Zanella, who worked at the Poudre School District, was convicted last year after video footage showed him hitting, kicking, kneeing, slapping, and verbally assaulting autistic children on the bus. The district hired him as a paraprofessional despite his prior child abuse conviction.

In 2023, Daisy Montgomery, one of the parents of a child on the bus, was first notified of the abuse.

"It was a Tuesday evening, I received a phone call from his school, the principal. And the principal said, 'Daisy, I've got some bad news,'" Mongomery said.

That phone call in 2023 would change Montgomery's life.

"My family will never be the same. I don't remember what life was like before Ash was assaulted," Montgomery said, "They showed us four videos of the 37 that they ended up finding in a one month period of our son being brutally assaulted."

Her son Ashton is autistic and at the time, he was in kindergarten and non-verbal. He was one of 11 kids abused on the bus by Zanella as video shows him hitting, kicking, kneeing, slapping, and verbally assaulting autistic children.

"You feel like you're so close to your child, like you could almost reach through the video and just save your kid or stop what's happening, but you can't," Montgomery said.

Zanella was sentenced to more than 12 years in prison for the assaults. Following his guilty plea, parents filed suit against the district, with claims made on behalf of 10 students abused by Zanella. The district settled with the parties involved for $16.2 million in damages, which the school board approved Tuesday.

"I'm grateful that they were open to saying like we were wrong and that we needed to make changes, but I wish it didn't have to come at the expense of a little kindergarten boy," Montgomery said.

School officials said the district is committed to addressing the harm caused and supporting the recovery of the students and families affected.

The board said the district has invested nearly $2 million in implementing safety measures, employee training programs, and revising policies and protocols for better accountability and oversight. District officials said those changes include:

Revised hiring practices that exceed industry and state standards.

-Installation of advanced bus camera systems across the entire fleet.

-Hiring a dedicated Transportation Manager for students with disabilities to oversee and support bus operations.

-Improved comprehensive staff training on trauma-informed care, behavior management and mandatory reporting.

-Improved communication and collaboration between transportation, schools and families.

A statement from the board said, "These measures are only a part of our unwavering commitment to student safety and well-being. While these incidents are a painful chapter in our history, they are also a catalyst for important and necessary improvements."

"We are mindful that our next chapter must include increased efforts centered on healing, repairing the harm done, and rebuilding trust.  PSD remains steadfast in our dedication to fostering a safe, inclusive, and supportive environment for all students. We thank the families, staff, and broader community for their trust and partnership as we continue to grow stronger together."

And while the settlement can help bring some closure, Montgomery says healing, will still take time.

"There are still moments where he will flinch when we go to wash his hair or lean in for a kiss or go to give him a hug, and our cheek touches the top of his head," Montgomery said.

But through therapy, and sharing their story, Montgomery hopes her family can continue to heal and protect kids in the future.

"No amount of money will ever make better what happened, but Ashton will be taken care of and his needs for the rest of his life. And that is a lot more than what a lot of autistic children and a lot of autistic people have," Montgomery said.

The settlement will be paid jointly by the district and the district's insurance carrier, the Colorado School Districts Self Insurance Pool. The pool agreed to pay $10 million of the proposed settlement, with the district providing the remaining $6.2 million. Due to the unexpected expense, the Poudre School District Board of Education approved the use of contingency reserves to cover the payment.