the hardest thing I have ever had to do.” Rodney Mitchell, transportation op-


erations manager at the same district, says his greatest challenges are absenteeism, maintaining the fleet and implementing cost-saving measures, such as the district’s new transportation fees. “Everyone handles stress differently. I


try to set some time aside each day just to get away, even if it’s 15 minutes. I try to help people around me see the posi- tive on a daily basis. We can’t focus on the negative,” Mitchell says. “Tere will always be more budget cuts, but we still have one of the most important jobs to do, trans- porting the most precious cargo in the world—our kids.”


SEEING ‘THE BIG PICTURE’ Rick Terrell, transportation director at


Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District near Houston, is fortunate to have a dedicated HR representative to handle personnel issues for 1,200 employees in the transportation department, including 700 drivers. “Te people who come to work love the


kids or they wouldn’t be doing it, and they do a great job. But it is a tough job,” says Terrell. “We just keep doing everything we can to be as efficient as possible.” Like Mitchell, Terrell finds his work quite


rewarding, despite the challenges, because of the invaluable service they are providing. “We get to touch young people’s lives,


and we’re directly responsible for their effectiveness in the classroom. Tat’s some- thing we can never forget,” Terrell adds. His transportation HR director, Bill Pow-


ell, comments that every transportation department and school district is stressed over funding, and Cypress-Fairbanks ISD is no different. Powell says the employees are still facing the same challenges they always have. For school bus drivers, be- havior management remains number one, and heavy traffic is a close second. “Te best solution for the drivers is to just


engage their students, meet and greet them and get to know their names. Tat’s half the battle in student management,” says Powell. Transportation directors often strug-


gle with hiring and keeping competent, caring school bus drivers, he explains, be- cause not all of them enjoy working with


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children. With 22 years in student trans- portation, Powell has encountered nearly every challenge imaginable. “When issues arise, you have to meet with


the employees and the biggest thing is just listening…and seeing what you can to do help. Actively listening is important,” he says. Powell has a positive way of looking at


the state of student transportation, which he likens to tracking an investment port-


folio. In both cases, you will see gains as well as losses, he explains, so it is best to look at “the big picture.” “Transportation always gets the job


done no matter what—no matter what obstacles are put ahead of it, no matter what budget deficits,” adds Powell. “We figure out a way to get it done because kids have got to get to school and we’ve got to get them home.” ■


Fleet intelligence–delivered With Tyler Telematic GPS™


your vehicles can:


• GENERATE their own work order requests • NOTIFY you when conditions tell them they will not start • REPORT on the location of your drivers as well as their driving habits • SEND you a message when they leave the bus yard in the morning


• EVEN SEND A TEXT MESSAGE to the parents of the soccer team letting them know they are almost back to school after the meet


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