She noted KCPS had past challenges with transporta-
tion services. “It was an Achilles heel for our district, and it was something that caused us to lose a lot of trust with our community and our families,” she said. “Year after year, we would promise that things would improve, and they did not.” Prior to partnering with Zum about two years ago, she said families expressed frustration as children were showing up late to school, or not at all. “There’s a trick- le-down effect when the contractors that we work with and vendors are not able to really hold up their end of the bargain,” she shared. Collier noted that when KCPS began researching new transportation vendors, it sought a company that would “prioritize meeting our students and our families’ needs,” which not only included being customer centric but also taking care of its drivers. “One of the things that really attracted us to Zum was
the way that they center the well-being of their drivers,” she explained. “And I tell our folks all the time, as we’re serving students, we have to think about the well-being of the adults, because you can’t pour from an empty cup.…And when we think about drivers and the reliabili- ty of transportation, it was important that we had drivers that knew that they would be treated well, that the spaces that they would be working in are adequate, and that transportation itself was comfortable for them.” This included air-conditioned buses, a livable wage and benefits. On the contrary, Lamar Consolidated Independent School District in Texas—the latter being home to 2026 National Superintendent of the Year Roosevelt Niv- ens—takes pride in running in-house transportation operations.
Lamar ISD Chief Operations Officer Greg Buchanan said transportation is operated in-house because the district believes direct oversight protects student safety and service quality. “Managing transportation internally helps us up- hold consistent safety standards, invest in our staff and quickly address the needs of our growing district,” he shared. “While we collaborate with vendors for special- ized technology like routing software, fleet management and camera systems, we are careful to keep operational control. We see vendors as tools to support our capacity, not replace district responsibilities. By blending internal leadership with strategic vendor partnerships, we stay flexible and maintain accountability within the district.” Similarly, Superintendent Paul Otten at Beavercreek
City Schools in Ohio said he also views owning and operating their own fleet as a benefit. “We look at our bus drivers as people that live in our community,” he said. “These are people who actually have kids in our district. And our hope is that those individuals truly have a vest- ed interest in the district.” He said having services in-house ensures the district
takes the responsibility of meeting specs and talking to parents. “We feel the right thing to do is to keep the ownership with us and run our own transportation de- partment,” he said. The school district is considering outside help to cover a select number of routes due to the driver shortage.
Hot Trend: Staff Shortages For many district leaders, the biggest challenge isn’t buses or routing software, it’s people. As driver shortages strain districts nationwide, administrators say keeping students moving safely to and from school requires
AASA Super of the Year Lamar Consolidated Independent School District
Superintendent Roosevelt Nivens won the National Superintendent’s Association’s National Superintendent of the Year award Feb. 12. “Across public education, we’re navigating a season of both challenge and opportunity,” he told School Transportation News. “At Lamar CISD, our focus is on staying grounded in what matters most—student safety, strong systems and a clear sense of purpose. Being a hyper-growth district requires us to think differently, lead with intention, and remain adaptable. Whether it’s through people, processes, or technology, our responsibility is to ensure that every decision ultimately supports students and strengthens trust with our community.” Visit
stnonline.com/go/ow to read more about Nivens.
42 School Transportation News • APRIL 2026
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