John Nickolich Maintenance Supervisor Ann Arbor School District / Durham School Services Ann Arbor, Michigan
John Nickolich joined the Ann Arbor school bus garage in the early 1980’s as a bus technician.
Over the next 20 years, he mastered his craft and became an ASE master technician. For the past 12 years, Nickolich has been the maintenance supervisor for the district and also now for Durham School Services. Mark Petrozzi, region maintenance manager for Durham, said the Ann Arbor CSC is a true
testament to the high standards held by Nickolich, the district and the entire company. “Everything has a place, and there’s a place for everything,” is the workplace motto. “Most of us have seen clean shops in our days,” said Petrozzi, who nominated him. “But the true measure for any school bus operation is the state inspection results—and Ann Arbor holds the bar high on that account,” Petrozzi points out. “For the past five years, all 150 buses have passed the Michigan State Police Inspection, with zero rolling or out of service failures. Every bus has received a green-tag, first-time pass rating, with zero defects.” Petrozzi also reported
that he “fights relentlessly for the district and its interests, often battling on behalf of the district for good will warranty on failures due to design flaws.” Since Nickolich is a technician by trade, maintenance manager by day, and drummer in a band by night, he gets involved in a bit of everything. “He wears many hats throughout his journey, and I couldn’t be prouder than to have such a high-caliber person on my team,” Petrozzi commented.
Chris Phillips Maintenance Manager National Express/Durham School Services Spokane, Washington
Chris Phillips has and continues to be one of the anchors of this region, said Lance Sloan,
regional maintenance manager for Durham School Services. He added that Sloan’s staff and operations hold him in the highest regard. Sloan, who nominated Phillips, reported that he works in the community in his off-time. “He also dedicates himself to television/movie sets, to working with local technical schools to develop and place future mechanics in apprentice positions,” Sloan revealed. “Chris is always the first to offer himself and his staff to assist others. Chris has stepped up and taken on more responsibility during our GM vacancy.” Phillips was the key in developing his staff, so they receive the ASE Blue Seal award, and “continues to develop tech- nical skills for those who work for him. I am proud to nominate Chris for this award,” Sloan said.
Michael Schreiner, Jr. Mechanic II Apple Valley Unified School District Apple Valley, California
Michael (“Mikey”) Schreiner, Jr. has stepped up in the absence of the fleet manager, to not only seam- lessly fill in for this vacancy, but to make it a stronger position. Sandy Dillman, director of transportation
for Apple Valley Unified, recalled that Schreiner has won the California Best Mechanic competition for the last two years, and last year he reached second-place in the inspector category at the NAPT Ameri- ca’s Best competition. Dillman, who nominated Schreiner, noted that he “brought back some great ideas to the garage and has implemented some of them. He has earned the respect of the other mechanics, and they are more than willing to try all of the new things Mikey suggested or brought forward.” Dillman also reported that there has been a definite improvement in the shop morale, which “has been changed, and other departments in our dis-
trict have noticed.” She said that he “has effortlessly made it a work environment that employees like coming to. Absenteeism is down to the lowest that it has ever been in my 30-plus years at Apple Valley USD. Mikey is most definitely a valued individual.”
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