FIRST TAKE Driving from Denver International Airport toward downtown to attend the National
Conference on Education, I was certain the cabbie was taking me for a ride. And, yes, I mean of the fleecing variety. Could it really be $65 from the airport to my hotel, even in rush hour? Especially when it only took 35 minutes to get to my destination? Te experience made me think of how a new, first-time superintendent might have a
Recalling a Life Spent in Service
By Ryan Gray
similar sense of dread when reviewing annual budget proposals. It must be nice to be able to rely on the utmost in professionalism and expertise when accounting for how taxpayer money is spent. Ten I remembered that description essentially sums up many school dis- trict transporters I know nationwide. I was in the Mile High City to interview Dr. Edgar Hatrick, the current president of the
American Association of School Administrators (AASA) and the superintendent of Lou- doun County (Va.) Public Schools located outside of Washington, D.C., one of the top performing school systems in the state and the country. Hatrick has been in his current role for the past two decades, in a time when it’s quite
customary for districts to see a new superintendent every couple of years. Hatrick has 45 years of total experience in public education, additionally as a teacher and principal, all at LCPS. So I figured he was the ideal person to speak with regarding how transportation departments must collaborate with school administrators at budget time to ensure that school boards receive the right information. It’s all about the expert influencers (see transporters) providing the necessary data and
information on how to be most efficient and effective in student support services, organiz- ing them based on their most vital needs and presenting the package to their supervisors. I set out writing this month’s cover story on how Hatrick manages all of Loudoun Coun-
ty’s public school services, including the transportation department. But I soon took a detour after learning more about the district’s history, a definitive version of which could certainly be written by the superintendent and one of Loudoun County’s most prized (and missed) residents. Many in this industry know the name Michael Lunsford, the long-time transportation
guru at the school district, who passed away last year. I can’t recall having the pleasure of meeting Lunsford in person, but I certainly recognized him from various conferences I attended over the years. And I soon learned from Hatrick and current Transportation Director Alvin Hampton exactly how revered Lunsford was not only in the county but throughout the state. So the article evolved into a story about the impression he left on his hometown school system, especially as it pertains to helping to usher in the first fleet of school buses in Virginia that is equipped, at least partially at this writing, with three-point occupant restraint systems. But, I suspect, Lunsford, if he were alive today, would simply say with humility that he
was but one link in a long, strong chain that makes up Loudoun County Public Schools. He was certainly much more than that. He was a dedicated leader everyone gravitated toward, a man with an innate knowledge of school transportation and one who still elicits awe from those who speak about him. And all evidence points to Lunsford as the utmost protector of student safety. To give Lunsford his due, much of this month’s article starting on page 28 is dedicated to
him. Hatrick knew Lunsford a very long time, some 45 years. And in that span the super- intendent has, quoting the start of the cover story, “seen it all” as he has also overseen the building of an educational empire, of which transportation is surely a key part. In this ca- pacity, Hatrick has very many interesting insights to share about transportation’s role in the school budget and how integral his department is not only to the school board approval process but to total child safety in the district. I also asked him about his thoughts on the role of the school bus in educating the child and how important the yellow vehicles are to providing reliable service to students. I invite you to read that conversation in our Web Exclusive at
www.stnonline.com
as well as this month’s issue featuring potential tools for school administrators and transporters, alike. ■
12 School Transportation News Magazine April 2011
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