An Iowa school board established a policy that included a complete ban on nonmandated school busing with the option that parents could purchase busing for their children at the full district average cost. The program has provided necessary additional revenues to prevent budget cuts in educational programs. Provides information about the…

Explores some of the factors to consider before school planners decide to buy new school buses. Provides a checklist to help build and maintain a bus fleet. Concludes by addressing bus safety and advertising. (GR)

As in Edina, Minnesota, many schools are finding adolescent sleep research persuasive enough to consider later or multiple starting times, risking parents' and teachers' wrath. Time adjustments become entangled with issues such as bus transportation, interscholastic athletics, student jobs, child-care arrangements, and juvenile crime. Tips are…

In many states, the greatest threat to safe student transportation is elimination of the school transportation program. Using public transit buses, large vans, smaller vehicles, or specialized equipment can cause major-issue headaches. False issues include controversies over seat belts, bus design, and optional "bells and whistles." (10…

Discusses problems school transportation administrators face in managing the transportation of special needs students. These include finding part-time, low paid drivers and attendants, managing equipment not approved for buses, training drivers to handle medically fragile and emotionally disabled children, and dealing with federal and state…

Bus disaster drills have been held all over country for years. A drill in Blairsville, Pennsylvania, taught officials important lessons: (1) keep roster of students and stops in designated area on bus, and ensure emergency workers know where location; (2) send at least three school officials to accident scene; (3) provide school officials with…

The majority of school districts have installed video cameras on buses. Videotaping school-bus riders provides a tangible picture, complete with sound. Along with the cameras, districts should have a disciplinary process in place. (MLF)

Examines the legal, administrative, and logistical barriers that have prevented the wide acceptance of coordinating community and school transportation services and why these barriers may be breaking down. Two examples of successful implementation of coordinated transportation are examined: employing a single system to serve all transportation…

The purpose of this study was to assess the nature of bullying on the school bus. Videotapes were used to identify occurrences of bullying on buses of elementary school students. Incidents were reviewed for forms of bullying, fullness, presence of friends, and severity of acts. Results indicated that approximately two incidents occurred per bus…

Background: As society continues to focus on the importance of academic achievement, the physical environment of schools should be addressed as 1 of the critical factors that influence academic outcomes. The School Health Policies and Programs Study (SHPPS) 2006 provides, for the first time, a comprehensive look at the extent to which schools have…

"Alabama Education News" is published monthly except for June, July, and December by the Alabama Department of Education. This publication, authorized by Section 16-2-4 of the "Code of Alabama", as recompiled in 1975, is a public service of the Alabama Department of Education designed to inform citizens and educators about…

A motivational plan to reduce bus discipline referrals in a K-5 elementary school is presented in this practicum paper. Methodology involved observation of student behavior on 13 buses, pre- and post-tests administered to third- through fifth-graders, and document analysis of student misconduct citations and bus conduct reports. Referral…

This report of a Colorado school district's program for student management on school buses includes descriptions of discipline procedures and the "Safe Ridership" program which is offered at the elementary and junior high levels and which of instructs students on ridership rules and regulations. Also included are copies of the relevant…

A bus driver training program was developed and implemented in a rural school district in an effort to improve the driving skills of the bus drivers. The program was tailored to meet the needs of the bus drivers and utilized various community agencies for demonstration and teaching purposes. The subject areas included in the program were driver…

Presented are proceedings and supplementary reports of the Midwest School Transportation Fleet Management Seminar, which was held in Lansing, Michigan, November 28-29, 1979. Among the school bus energy management topics discussed are energy feasibility studies, the use of programmed information systems, energy conservation strategies, and…