assistant superintendent, who oversees transportation operations, has a greater understanding and grasp of the entire operation, which does make things easier. To help change perceptions of what transportation does,


the employee advises all school administrators to sit in on a school bus driver classroom training. Then that infor- mation learned should be passed down to teachers and other building staff members so that everyone is aware of transportation’s job functions and the responsibilities and requirements placed upon them. “It goes down to the educators, they also to tend to


look at those drivers like they don’t know anything,” the West Coast student transporter shared. “They [think driv- ers] haven’t been educated so they’re just driving a bus.” The transportation employee added that in one instance at a neighboring district, a student with special needs was misbehaving. When the issue was brought up to the building staff, transportation was told, “The child is only on the bus for five minutes, just deal with it.” Additionally, transportation was the last department to


get its facility updated, wheras making all departments equal or allowed equal access to all decisions should be


the goal, the source relayed. “And we hear it all the time, ‘Oh, you’re the first person and the last person to make an impres- sion.’ But how much of that is just talk and how much is it really understood?” Meanwhile, some administration staff members more than understand because they have worked in transportation. For instance, Nicole Portee worked in the Denver Public Schools transportation department, eventually rising to the role of executive director, before transitioning to senior administrator roles at Guilford County Schools and most recently Charlotte-Mecklen- burg Schools in North Carolina. “There’s a commitment to students meeting their


STN Publisher Tony Corpin presenting Nicole Portee the 2018 TD of the Year Award.


Continued on pg. 28 ➥


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