FAYETTEVILLE — A Cumberland County school bus driver is accused of pricking students with a needle.

Gloria Anderson, who rode bus 165 Monday, was fired from her job after she took blood samples from two eighth-graders and a seventh-grader atAnne Chesnutt Middle School.

Anderson says she needed the blood samples for a phlebotomy class that she is taking at a community college. She says she was caught up in the excitement of a new career. She even asked other bus drivers if she could prick their fingers with a disposable needle.

"I'm sorry that I misjudged it. I should have asked the kids first to ask their parents if it was OK. I did not do it to cause any harm at all," Anderson says.

The incident took place four weeks ago, but principal Chuck Hubbard did not find out about it until Tuesday.

"In this field, you can't make an error in judgment when it involves youngsters, and that is the problem that she is dealing with," says principal Chuck Hubbard.

The student resource officer at the school is investigating the incident. Letters about the incident have been sent home to parents. So far, no charges have been filed against Anderson.