Transporting Precious Cargo Beaverton School District doesn’t run any Type A school buses. The first reason is the district runs five tiers with five different start and release times between all school levels. At most, there is 40 to 45 minutes between each tier. This makes route times a maximum of 35 minutes, needing to transport about 25,000 kids to and from school. Beaverton runs larger passenger buses to transport as many kids as possible, in a shorter amount of time. Type As with limited capacity don’t help the dis- trict, Beaver said. Plus, he noted that it would be bringing in another fuel type: Gasoline. The district’s priority is placing students on general


education routes. However, he noted that in instances when it’s in better interest of the child to be in a different bus, his department utilizes Type C school buses with a shorter wheelbase. All buses for special needs routes are wheelchair capable, and the special education depart- ment supplies the aides for transportation, per student IEPs. By fall 2026, all 115 special education buses will be powered by either renewable propane or electricity. Additionally, Beaverton does not run any kind of van


or alternative transportation service. The district does contract with a cab company to transport some students that live outside of the district, noting that out of 25,000 students transported last school year, only 20 didn’t ride on a school bus. This school year, three students are being transported via the cabs. “The cab company that we use, all of their cab drivers


are background checked and fingerprinted,” he said, adding that each cab is outfitted with video cameras and the drivers go through safety training.


Leadership Style Beaver noted his continued goal is to continue to


educate himself as much possible. “Just try harder” has always been his mantra, he said, adding that he’s been fortunate throughout his career to have bosses that encouraged him to try new things and not be afraid to make mistakes. He said he’s now fortunate to have his four supervisors that carry the load every day. “They allow me to be able to do a lot of the things with


the research and going to conferences,” he said, adding that he spent 10 hours a day for three and half months writing the grant to receive EPA Clean School Bus Pro- gram funds. “I was only able to do that because these guys carried the load during the summer from June to


August. I did nothing last year but that.” He noted that his role is to provide tools that his staff needs in order to do their job successfully, whether that’s by way of equipment, training or funding. “This is the vision, this is what we’re trying to accomplish,” he tells them, and he allows his supervisors to come up with ideas on how to improve and implement certain projects. He added that they also contribute to policy. “Five brains are better than one,” he said. “We bounce things off of each other. Ultimately, when it comes down to it, I make the decision, but I get a lot of input.” He added this also allows him to be on the ground,


driving a school bus from time to time, something he enjoys doing. “Everyone’s got to do whatever it takes to make the mission successful,” he said, adding that his first winter in Beaverton is referred to as Snowmaged- don. He was out in his suit and tie with another driver, who had just started that month, chaining buses at inter- sections, as traffic was gridlock. “That’s what needed to be done,” he said. “That’s how


everybody here works, especially as a leadership team.” Feldhan provided another example. On the first day of school this year, Beaver was in the dispatch center answer- ing phone calls and the radio to get a pulse of what was happening on routes. “He’s willingness to roll his sleeves up and do the work alongside his team,” Feldhan said. Beaver noted that when he drives a bus, he’s able to see things that would make a driver’s life easier. A recent ex- ample he noted was the trash cans in the lot were located too far for drivers to dump their trash from the school bus. Because of this, more trash cans were added across the lot. Another example, was when he noticed the radio systems were too slow. He found $248,000 needed to upgrade the radio system. “I like the real-life experience to see what’s going on,” he said. “It’s one thing when some- body tells [you there’s a problem], but it’s another thing when you’re trying to use the radio and you’re sitting there for literally 90 seconds waiting for the busy signal to go by, and you got a kid problem behind you or whatever. It’s an entirely different perspective. “Plus, it’s a real morale builder,” he continued. “I think


the drivers really appreciate that I and the supervisors are out doing the job and we’re willing to get our hands dirty.” Driving a route, he said, also keeps him ground-


ed on the day-to-day operations. Plus, he added that sometimes when sitting behind a desk he only sees the negative: the referrals, the problems and complaints


On a Personal Note Craig Beaver is in his 25th season as a high school football official. The former college football player started officiating in San


Diego, when he worked at Grossmont Unified School District, and transferred his skill to Beaverton, which includes working games located on the picturesque Oregon coastline. “When I watch the news and things are getting terrible and I hear these stories,” he shared “I go out and drive a route or officiate a game and I think ‘we’re going to be just fine.’”


46 School Transportation News • NOVEMBER 2024


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