Bret E. Brooks, Gray Ram Tactical chief operating of-
ficer and a retired Missouri state highway patrol officer, said while there is no specific national databases track- ing school bus violence, his company’s research shows a steady increase from 2007 to 2019 with a few minor dips in a couple of years. “Then COVID-19 hit. Things changed rapidly and sig-
nificantly,” he added. “In 2020, while many schools were operating remotely and the number of buses transport- ing students across the country was limited, the amount of violence on school buses actually increased.” That should have been a warning sign, Brooks pointed
out, adding violence spiked in 2021 and continued to escalate until last year before declining. While numbers continue to trend downward, they
are still too high, he pointed out. Brooks discussed the indicators of violence, equipping attendees at STN EXPO East in March with skills to recognize early signs of vio- lent behavior on school buses. Cynthia Burgess, lead trainer at Winfield R-IV School
District in Winfield, Missouri, noted her district handles behavior in school transportation by training the driver to turn in written incident reports. “If necessary, video footage from the bus is reviewed to further investigate the incident,” she added. “Our dis- trict effectively utilizes technology and maintains strong working relationships with manufacturers to support safe and efficient operations.” Having a clear policy in place for handling fights, along with de-escalation technique training, helps re-
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