The school week of Feb. 11 to 15 this year was designated by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction as Bus Driver Appreciation Week.
Students, staff and administration in our schools provided meals, gifts and other tokens of appreciation for the bus company personnel and drivers to show our appreciation. Simply put, a week is not enough time for me to express my gratitude for all bus drivers endure in their effort to get our children to and from school safely. Every week during the school year — and summer school — should be Bus Driver Appreciation Week!
First of all, driving a bus, even if it is empty, is difficult. It is long, inflexible, top-heavy, and it takes quite a distance to stop or slow. It is difficult to handle on snowy roads, but even more impossible to handle on ice. Even with a variety of mirrors — many of which I can’t tell what they are designed to provide a view of — they have many blind spots. Even though they are painted safety yellow, people often claim they can’t see them. They have a STOP sign attached to them and a flexible armature, yet people think that sign is optional at times as viewed on my most recent trip across a railroad track as a person who apparently was in a hurry passed me and a stopped bus to the left across a railroad track in the city. (I think this violates at least three ordinances.) Even with all that said, school buses are still the safest mode of transportation to and from schools.
When I mentioned how hard they are to drive, I didn’t even mention the passengers. Often enthusiastic, along with being small and somewhat flexible; young children on buses present a wide variety of challenges to a skilled driver who should be focusing their eyes on the road. If it isn’t how loud they talk, it might be what they are saying. If they are in their seat, they are touching each other. If they are out of their seat, they shouldn’t be. Lastly, if they are stoic and quiet, they might be sleeping and they may miss their drop off. I have a hard enough time driving with my wife and two children in the same car. Imagine 50 children all revved up from a day of school “drama” packed into a flat, yellow can managed by one person utilizing mirrors and magic just to keep the vehicles on the road.
Because the job is thankless, the hours are split. The pay is hourly without benefits, the age demographics of drivers are high and the economy is good; we are in an absolute crisis in our nation concerning the number of available and qualified bus drivers.
Locally, the School District of Monroe contracts with Lamers Bus Lines Inc. for student transportation. The district goes to bid every five years and we have used other transportation providers in the past. The bus drivers who serve our community are employees of Lamers and many of them were employed by previous companies when they had our district’s contract. Other area districts employ their own bus drivers and own their own buses. Having served in districts that follow both models, there is no “right or wrong” way to go about staffing bus drivers. The reality is that driving a bus does not fit many people’s schedule, it is challenging work, the work is part time and the pay certainly doesn’t lead to great personal wealth.
Many bus drivers over the years have been retirees from previous work or worked on farms. Historically, those are two arrangements where the flexibility in one’s schedule has meshed well with driving buses. Some larger districts have focused their recruiting efforts on stay-at-home parents, emphasizing that it is an opportunity to earn money while your children are going to school. Some companies, such as Lands’ End in Dodgeville, have started partnering with bus companies to connect two part-time positions for potential drivers so they can have a “traditional” 40 hour work week as a bus driver.
The reality is that driving a school bus is a community service we should appreciate. As a district administrator, I sometimes field parent and community complaints about bus drivers or what happens on buses. I treat these complaints with seriousness, yet I don’t know how patient I would always be if I were in the shoes of a bus driver driving a crowded bus on an icy road while it is still dark outside. There are many difficult jobs that are essential in order for schools to function as they do today, and bus drivers are certainly one of the most critical groups of individuals who allow for education to be successful. After all, they are the first and last person over half of our students see on nearly every school day.
I know this article is probably not the greatest recruiting tool for bus drivers. However, driving a bus is a great service to the community and it does come with some priceless moments.
If you have a good driving record, you have early morning and mid-afternoons free, and you want to make a difference, you may want to consider giving back to your community as a bus driver. If you want to know how to become a bus driver in Monroe, feel free to call Denise Schindler at Lamers at 325-7788. If you live elsewhere, I am sure you can learn more by contacting your local school district.
— Rick Waski is the district administrator for the School District of Monroe. He can be reached at 608-328-7109 or rickwaski@monroe.k12.wi.us.
