Brad Hayn, right, speaks with bus driver Rob Slane at Hoover City Schools in Alabama.
New York said it’s about building an environment where people feel like they’re part of a family. “For us, it’s about making sure our team knows we care
about them as individuals,” he said. “I have always said that you can’t just talk about it, you must show up and be present.” He continued that the Top Transportation Teams
award was proof of these efforts yielding results as, “The team is happy and motivated, and that directly translates to a better experience for the students we serve.” Rosa at Wa-Nee said she tries to foster an environment
where all staff—school bus drivers, monitors office and garage staff—are seen, heard and valured. “As we keep our focus on elevating the people in our department the entire system becomes more successful,” she said. Julie Lawson, who again represented Pembroke Cen-
tral School District in New York, a repeat winner from 2023 and which had the highest team score this year, shared at STN EXPO West that she talks with her drivers in the morning and throws pizza parties to make them feel at ease and comfortable with approaching her. Hollas described a project he took on after seeing that the transportation office was “pretty rundown,” painted in a dismal grey and outfitted with broken appliances. He explained that he was able to convey to his ad-
32 School Transportation News • OCTOBER 2025
ministration that an update would improve employee satisfaction and help with retention. A new coat of paint with the school colors, new refrigerators, additions of comfortable furniture and a mini-marketplace vend- ing machine with varied options were included in the updates.
After these changes were made, he said he saw depart-
ment morale improve, and that people were starting to carry themselves differently by taking pride in their jobs. He noted that this change has impacted recruitment and fixed the driver shortage issue ,as many of his drivers now encourage their friends who also drove school bus- es to come work at Goddard. As Transfinder President and CEO Antonio Civitella
said at STN EXPO West, “It’s all part of getting people recognized.” When it comes to handling situations with employees
that may not be willing to follow procedures or be part of a winning team, these values of trust and respect be- come more important than ever. Mapengo said she saw first-hand the results of one individual’s decision affect her other drivers, as they got unkind stares from parents. “And as a leader, I’ve learned that my role is to make
sure those bright spots shine—to remind teams of their worth, to guide them through challenges, and to never
PHOTO CREDIT: OF HOOVER CITY SCHOOLS
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