School Bus Driver - Transportation

About the role

The job of Bus Driver is established for the purpose of supporting student transportation services. Responsibilities include ensuring students are safely, efficiently, and timely transported over scheduled routes, operating the vehicle safely, and ensuring student safety during transport, loading, and unloading.

Responsibilities

• Maintain and enforce safe and appropriate behavior of all riders in accordance with established guidelines to ensure passenger safety.
• Memorize student names and associate names with faces to ensure safe, correct, and timely transportation of students.
• Made timely, efficient, and correct decisions with little to no supervision to meet the needs of students under various situations while ensuring student safety.
• Safely maneuver school bus through confined streets and unfamiliar areas.
• Work cooperatively and collaboratively with teachers, administrators, parents, and other staff members to maintain a safe and compassionate environment, including implementing behavior and bus plans for students.
• Interact positively with students and model appropriate behavior.
• Maintain confidentiality of student records and other information shared about students.
• Recognize, evaluate, and respond to incidents, complaints, accidents, and potential emergency situations for the purpose of resolving and/or recommending a resolution to the situation.
• Train and work with students and other passengers for the purpose of encouraging and reinforcing safe loading and unloading from buses during normal transport and emergency situations.
• Attend meetings, in-service training, workshops, etc., for the purpose of gathering information and staying up to date on required knowledge to perform job functions.
• Inform school personnel and parents of events, policies, and/or practices for the purpose of providing information and/or clarification of procedures.
• Maintain a clean, sanitary environment of the school bus for the purpose of providing a safe environment for passengers.
• Perform daily pre-trip inspection before leaving the lot.
• Regulate heating, lighting, and ventilating systems for passenger comfort.
• Comply with local traffic regulations.
• Report delays or accidents.
• Accurately complete required student reports, etc., in a timely manner.
• Follow all oral and written instructions given by supervisors and dispatchers.
• Operate specialized routes as assigned.
• Flexible in changing assignments and duties with little to no notice.
• Exceptional attendance.
• Ability to work with students with behavior, medical, ambulatory, and other special needs.
• Ability to deal with daily stressors such as inappropriate verbal and physical behaviors.
• Ability to provide escort service as required.
• Ability to operate specialized equipment such as wheelchair lifts.
• Ability to safely utilize various child safety restraint systems (CSRS) including wheelchair securements.
• Familiar with district streets and roads.
• Familiar with individual school loading/unloading operations district-wide.
• Exceptional student management skills.
• Ability to stay calm in high stress situations.
• Ability to operate safely in unfamiliar areas with little support.
• Ability to shift from various assignments with little to no notice.
• Ability to work extended hours with little to no notice.
• Ability to operate all buses in the fleet.
• Ability to serve as a Bus Aide when and as needed.
• Familiar with surrounding areas.
• Capable of operating long hours without a break.
• Driving at highway speeds.
• Making safety decisions.
• Applying common sense to work through issues and concerns.

Requirements

• High School diploma or equivalent.
• Commercial Driver’s License Class B with endorsement for Passenger Vehicles, School Bus endorsement, and Air Brake.
• CPR/First Aid.

Skills

• Perform multiple tasks simultaneously.
• Desire to upgrade skills in order to meet changing job conditions.
• Memorizing student names and associating them with faces.
• Adhering to safety practices.
• Administering first aid.
• Applying pertinent codes, policies, regulations, and/or laws.
• Operating district vehicles.
• Using special equipment such as: fire extinguisher, two-way radio, and standard office equipment.
• Preparing and maintaining accurate records.

Knowledge

• Perform basic math, including calculations using fractions, percent, and/or ratios.
• Read a variety of manuals.
• Write documents following prescribed formats, and/or present information to others.
• Analyze situations to define issues and draw conclusions.
• Emergency evacuation techniques.
• Familiarity of area streets and locations.
• Basic vehicle maintenance.
• First aid, health standards, and hazards.
• Pertinent codes, policies, regulations, and/or laws.
• Safe driving practices.
• Safety practices and procedures.
• Two-way radio communication.
• Utilization of special equipment such as; wheelchairs, tie downs, CSRS, child safety seats, lifts, etc.

Ability

• Gather and/or collate data.
• Use job-related equipment.
• Flexibility is required to work with others in a wide variety of circumstances.
• Work with data utilizing defined and similar processes.
• Operate equipment using a variety of standardized methods.
• Work with a diversity of individuals and/or groups.
• Problem solving is required to identify issues and create action plans.
• Problem solving with data requires independent interpretation of guidelines; and problem solving with equipment is moderate to significant.
• Being attentive to detail.
• Communicating with diverse groups including school age riders.
• Displaying tact and courtesy.
• Establishing and maintaining effective working relationships.
• Exercising sound judgment.
• Maintaining an understanding of the special needs of students and their parents.
• Maintaining confidentiality.
• Safe driving with constant distractions.

Physical Demands

• Sit, talk, and hear.
• Lift and/or move up to 40 pounds and occasionally up to 100 pounds.
• Significant fine finger dexterity and sense of smell.
• Significant fine finger dexterity.
• Generally, the job requires 85% sitting, 10% walking, and 5% standing.

Working Environment

• Moving mechanical parts.
• Fumes or airborne particles.
• Vibration.
• Outside weather conditions.
• Moderate noise level in the work environment.