The Bus Driver
15 Years Experience
South, ..
Female, 37
I have been a bus driver since late 2006. I know the inside story, the scoop, the down low dirt of what it takes to be a bus driver, how to handle kids and adults, and how to survive on the "streets" so to speak. I used to have a blog, feel free to browse it or ask me a question here.
Yes there is. Every bus driver, teacher, principal, and other employee in the school system is a Mandated Reporter. That means if we suspect or witness child abuse, we HAVE to report it by law. Each state is different in how to report child abuse, but where I work, if we suspect a child is being abused at home, we notify the supervisor at the bus shop and the school the child attends. It then sets into motion numerous meetings between the principal, counselors, and teachers involved and often will get the child out of the abuse situation. We take abuse cases very seriously and it is sometimes very hard to prove that there is any abuse going on because many people will not abuse the child in front of us. We document everything we notice such as signs of physical abuse or neglect, and various behavior patterns. Often, if a parent is habitually not home when we drop off a young child, we will report it and take the child over to the police station because the child is lacking in supervision at home.
Share Answer: 
This was a very hard video to watch, and in fact, I could not watch it all the way through. I address this issue on my blog. However to answer your question - Kids are mean. They do not think before they speak and often will torment others just because they can. I've been bullied by the kids before because of my size, and I don't let it bother me, and turn in those that are bullying. Unfortunately the consequences for the students who bully are not severe enough to STOP the bullying. Too many excuses for poor behavior.
Share Answer: 
Sometimes even the most seasoned bus driver isn't always cheerful in the mornings. I do try to greet my students with a good morning, even if I'm not the most cheerful. Yes sometimes the behavior does affect my mood, but when you think of bus drivers in movies, they're simply actors, they get paid to be all cheery. We are doing a job that is often thankless and can be very difficult.
Share Answer: 
The emergency doors in the back of the bus (or on the side of the bus in some models) are simply opened by a red lever in the back of the bus. Any child can do it in the case of an emergency. The door is not locked. The door can be locked, however when securing your bus for the evening after you have completed your route. The newer models of buses have a simple slide latch and the latch communicates with the ignition system of the bus. If the latch is locked, the bus will not start. It ensures that the door always stays unlocked so that students can get out in the case of an emergency.
Share Answer: 
Border Patrol Agent
Do Mexican authorities help on THEIR side of the border?
Call Center Employee (Retail)
I've heard that a lot of startups are hiring really well-educated college grads and paying them a lot, reasoning that customer service is often a client's most lasting impression of a brand. What do you think, and is it something you see spreading?
Server / Bartender
What's the best tip you ever got?
That’s a tough question to answer. Ideally if you have a monitor on the bus, the monitor should not be a distraction and you should be able to work side by side with the monitor. Have you tried speaking with the monitor directly? Maybe she/he doesn’t know that what they are doing is bothering you. If you feel you cannot speak to the person directly, ask your boss for a mediation session where he/she can have the both of you in the office and you two can hash out your differences. It may be that the boss may decide to move the monitor to a different bus, and give you a new monitor for yours. Personally, I prefer to drive a bus by myself because its easier to handle all behavior problems because I can be consistent in my discipline methods. If I write a student up for behavior and my monitor doesn’t for the same behavior, it sends mixed messages to the student on how to behave. I hope you find a resolution soon!
Share Answer: 
That's a good question - I'm not really sure how it works in other states and each individual school district has their own policies on what is considered inclement weather, but our district rarely closes for inclement weather. The one time we did, since I've been there, I think it was a combination of the transportation department and the school board deciding what was safest for the students. We had experienced some torrential rain which washed out a lot of our roads and caused some very unsafe conditions for students, so the school was closed because of the road conditions caused by the rain.
Share Answer: 
In my county, yes, we are responsible for cleaning our buses inside and out. Mainly we sweep the floors and we can rinse out the inside with soap and water with a hose. The outside of the bus gets washed by a large "bus wash" - a car wash for buses. We are supposed to sweep out the buses at least once a day, but some drivers will make it a weekly thing. Many drivers will ban the kids from eating or drinking on the bus to minimize the accumulation of trash on the bus and to prevent spills from liquids. Its easy to sweep a bus clear of all dirt (which is inevitable with kids on the bus), but it is harder to clean it if it is all sticky and dirty. I don't know how other bus shops run their buses.
Share Answer: 
-OR-
Login with Facebook (max 20 characters - letters, numbers, and underscores only. Note that your username is private, and you have the option to choose an alias when asking questions or hosting a Q&A.)
(A valid e-mail address is required. Your e-mail will not be shared with anyone.)
(min 5 characters)
By checking this box, you acknowledge that you have read and agree to Jobstr.com’s Terms and Privacy Policy.
-OR-
Register with Facebook(Don't worry: you'll be able to choose an alias when asking questions or hosting a Q&A.)
Browse Jobs
Host a Q&A
Search
Submit Your Question
Host a Q&A
Last 7
