was recognized by local politicians. “He was involved in the Cummins repower program and traveled to several locations across the Northeast to assist in the installs of diesel engines,” Mike Shanley, the region maintenance manager for First Student, wrote when nominating Gabriel. “Jed has attended Thomas Built Bus training in High Point, North Carolina. His expertise is recognized throughout the region, and he is consistently called upon to help neighboring locations


✪ Hannah Hunt Bus Technician


New Albany Floyd County Schools in Indiana


Fleet Maintained: 136 school buses, 11 mini activity buses & 9 district vehicles Total Shop Staff: 4 Technicians


Most challenging maintenance problem to date? “Figur-


ing out the aftertreatment issues on the different engines. There are so many different components on each that sometimes it can be overwhelming trying to figure out exactly what the problem is. But after working on several I have gotten much more efficient at fixing them.”


Hannah Hunt shared with Mitchell Corwin, the as-


sistant director of transportation for New Albany Floyd County Schools in Indiana, that she was facing a barrier when applying for heavy truck and bus positions be- cause her sex. But that didn’t detract her. She started her carrier in pupil transportation by driv- ing a school bus for three and half years. During the last year and a half, she obtained her certification as a diesel mechanic at Elizabeth Diesel College. She is also ASE certified in school bus brakes, and factory trained by IC Bus and ROUSH CleanTech in propane engine systems. She said she is proud to be viewed as a role model for


younger generations. “I think it’s important to break gender barriers because


there are women everywhere that have just as much talent, if not more talent, then men in all types of fields,” she said. “And the more women that step up and join predominantly male career fields, the easier it will be for future generations to get involved. If younger generations can see more and more women going into these fields, it will only make things easier for them to get involved in them also.” Corwin, who nominated Hunt for this month’s recog-


nition, said the school district is fortunate to have been able to hire her. “She leads our shop of technicians,” Corwin explained. “She specializes in the more complicated work such as aftertreatment, drivability, wheelchair lifts, and electrical. Not only has she broken the barrier into a male dominat-


diagnose and repair electrical issues. Jed always enjoys a challenge and is more than willing to share his vast knowledge with his fellow technicians.” Outside of work, Gabriel spends time with his two


children, Olivia, 5, who is learning to play lacrosse, and son Grant, 4, a budding ice hockey player. His wife of six years, Julianne, is a registered nurse and spent the last couple of years working on COVID-19 floors in various hospitals.


ed field, but she is excelling.” Currently, Hunt said the transportation department


is working on regen issues involving a MaxxForce DT engine. She shared that she is cleaning the aftertreat- ment injector, replacing the diesel particulate filter, the diesel oxidation catalyst, and replacing the IMP and IMT sensors.


“During the pandemic, with the buses sitting for so


long, we had a lot of issues with the [diesel exhaust fluid] and aftertreatment parts going bad, batteries dying, and parking brakes not releasing,” Hunt said. “Since the pandemic has passed, there has been more of an online training presence instead of an in-person, hands-on approach.”


She said her favorite part of her job is taking pride in the fact that she is helping to safely transport numerous students to and from school every day. When she’s not in the shop, she spends her free time


competing in rodeos and enjoys horseback riding. She also was selected to speak to women about breaking down gender barriers.


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