SPECIAL REPORT
“The fact that you can pull out a sheet of paper and
know exactly where a student sits in seconds speaks volumes on its own,” said McCulley, who is a 2022 STN Rising SuperStar. “In the event of an accident, some- times seconds count—why not be prepared?” When it comes to serving students with disabilities,
seating charts may be regarded as essential, especially in a situation where riders must be evacuated. “The use of seating charts is a must if you take evac-
uation seriously,” said Schmutz-Harden, who leads evacuation training provided this month at the TSD Conference in Frisco, Texas. She noted that some students, especially those with
disablities, may need time and training to develop the skills necessary to exit the bus during an emergency and may require assistance from a more capable stu- dent. This means they might sit closer to each other. Or a student might be hearing impaired and need a seat closer to the driver to be able to hear instructions in an emergency. “A driver and attendant should develop a proper evac-
uation plan with each student in mind,” she continued. “Getting them off the bus in an emergency is even more important than getting them to school.”
Easy Implementation Options for use of charts range from the simplicity
and low cost of paper to emerging high-tech solutions. At Exeter Township in Pennsylanvia, paper charts are the norm. The sheets are numbered with the seat numbers for each bus, with up to three lines per seat. “We just make them ourselves,” McCulley said. “They’re basic but still have all the information needed to be easi-
ly understood by anyone.” On Beaverton’s buses, the simplicity of paper is
complemented by masking tape placed above each assigned seat, with the student’s name in black marker. Kindergarten and first grade students find this especially helpful, Beaver noted. Drivers for Bend La Pine Schools use paper generated
from routing software. “We can fill them in for the driver from the student list
assigned to their route through our system, or we can print them blank for the driver to place students where they think it would be best,” Crabtree said, adding that the charts can be amended as needed by the driver. During the peak time of the pandemic, she said that the sheets were covered with a plastic sleeve, and drivers would mark student names on or off with a dry erase pen. A fully electronic approach represents another option.
For example, digital seating charts from Tyler Technolo- gies add flexibility and ease in updating that may not be possible with paper charts. Ryan Smithson, a solutions consultant for the company, explained that such features were expanded during the pandemic, when the need for dynamic seating charts became more evident. Devel- oped in tandem with the company’s mobile app for bus attendance, the charts allow users to pull up the bus ros- ter and seating chart for any run and record attendance on their phones. Along with timeliness, potential pluses include in-
creased reporting and accountability capabilities, easier access to historical data, and an improved level of ser- vice to the community. “Parents have a better experience when their child’s bus pass even includes their seat assignment,” Smithson
What are the most common results of implementing seating charts? 66% Decrease in student behavior issues 49% More driver control in emergency situations 23% Fostering of new student relationships 21% No improvement noted 9% Other (helps with lost and found items or when trash is left behind, faster loading times, etc.) (Out of 86 responses to a recent STN magazine reader survey. Total does not equal 100. Multiple answers allowed.)
18 School Transportation News • NOVEMBER 2022
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