A webinar showed how two school districts went beyond the yellow bus and utilized alternative transportation to serve vulnerable student populations.

Adam Gleicher, director of marketing for webinar sponsor HopSkipDrive and former public schools teacher, opened Thursday’s meeting by saying that the yellow bus is a starting point for most school districts but may not be the complete solution.

“This job is harder today than when I started,” declared Greg Dutton, senior transportation analyst for HopSkipDrive and former director of transportation for Renton School District in Washington.

He referenced HopSkipDrive’s State of School Transportation survey, which found current pressures include school bus driver shortages, tighter budgets, chronic student absenteeism, and growing student populations with specialized needs. Three in five bus routes have less than 50 percent ridership, he explained.

Dutton next reviewed the five main student transportation models and the strengths and weaknesses of each one:

Dutton said that, as a transportation director, he would start by trying to put a student on the yellow bus, then moving to alternative transportation if that didn’t work.

School buses do many things well, but they can’t go everywhere or serve all student needs, he underscored. Rather than a one-size-fits-all approach, he advised a “right vehicle for the right student” mindset, where buses and small vehicles each play a role so no students fall through the gaps and school bus drivers are better utilized.

Safety is the goal, but essential equipment such as booster seats are not guaranteed with transportation brokers or taxis, he noted. He encouraged leveraging multi-modal transportation to match each student with the best-fit vehicle considering turnaround time, in-ride experience and driver qualifications.

“HopSkipDrive was purpose-built for student transportation,” he emphasized.

One area where the company helps close gaps is for students covered under the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, Gleicher said.

The population of students experiencing homeless doubled in Sun Prairie Area School District in Wisconsin doubled since COVID-19, explained Claire Bergman, the district’s McKinney-Vento coordinator. She added that the taxis the district was using before its HopSkipDrive partnership often led safety concerns, ever-changing drivers, strained service and a stigma for the students who rode them.

As McKinney-Vento transportation is a federal law, budget can’t be an excuse, she said. She said she was able to assign certain students to separate vehicles to avoid interpersonal conflicts. Parents also have peace of mind, she said, since they know the drivers and can track their child’s ride to and from school.

When it comes to funding, Bergman advised looking into Title 1 monies, as well as getting creative with state or local grants.

Gleicher noted that HopSkipDrive’s six-hour turnaround time means rides are secured quickly with same-day or next-day fulfillment. Additionally, vetted CareDrivers are directly onboarded. They have trauma-informed care training and 15 years of caregiving experience on average.

5 Questions to Ask Student Transportation Partners

1. When a student moves tonight, can you get them to school tomorrow?
2. Who is actually behind the wheel? What are their qualifications — and how do you know?
3. Once a ride starts, who is watching to make sure it goes as planned?
4. Can my team manage and update rides without having to call someone?
5. Are you licensed in the states where you operate, and are you the provider of record?

Mechale’ Johnson used HopSkipDrive to transport three students at Falls Church City Public Schools in Virginia and now uses it for 100 students in her current role as director of the office of pupil transportation and fleet management for nearby Alexandria City Public Schools

Like Bergman, Johnson also primarily uses the service to transport an ever-increasing McKinney-Vento student population. She praised the ability to build routes other than home-to-school, such as when a student attends therapy offsite. She can use it on her phone or share access with staff to make faster changes. When a fire temporarily displaced several families, she connected them with HopSkipDrive.

“It’s definitely been helpful for us,” she stated.

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Gleicher reviewed HopSkipDrive’s alternative transportation offerings, which are designed to serve students with IEPs or experiencing homelessness, plus those going to career schools or after-school programs.

Dutton discussed the RouteWise AI routing intelligence and optimization technology, which can be used in addition to a district’s current routing software and lets staff model different cost-cutting solutions to avoid knee-jerk reactions to tightening budgets.

They shared that, with the help of RouteWise AI, Denver Public Schools increased small vehicle efficiency, saving over $500,000 in the 2023–2024 school year.

Dutton confirmed that HopSkipDrive can be a short- or long-term solution, and Gleicher specified that “you only pay for the rides you use.”

Watch the webinar on demand.

The post Districts Use Alternative Transportation to Support Mckinney-Vento Students appeared first on School Transportation News.

A Thursday webinar went behind the scenes into how a Dallas-area school district transportation department utilized data and alternative transportation to support student attendance amid budgetary concerns.

Budget Pressure is Rising

“We know efficiency is going to be top of mind for every district,” declared Courtney Pallotta, chief marketing officer for EverDriven.

She said the sponsored webinar Thursday was meant to provide tools so districts can submit budget plans with the goal of “[making] sure every kiddo gets to school every day, safely.”

Timothy Logan, director of transportation for nearby Garland Independent School District, advised keeping an eye on data and trends, such as enrollment fluctuations, spiking fuel costs, staff overtime and legislative mandates without funding.

“Prepare and pivot,” he encouraged.

Alex Muirbrook, strategic sales director for EverDriven, noted that the student-centric mission stays the same no matter the cost increases or how much the budget shrinks.

“It’s a very interesting paradox in that, when you think about student transportation, there are elements of what has to be managed every day that are incredibly operational like fuel or drivers, but the flipside is that the outcome is incredibly human,” Pallotta said. “At the end it’s still about a student experience.”

Pallotta reviewed a recent survey sent to STN readers that indicated pressure on transportation leaders continues despite varying budget outlooks.

Logan and Garland ISD Operations Supervisor Jazmyn Ware agreed with the survey results, which found that the top reasons transportation departments expected a funding decrease were: District-wide budget cuts, state and federal funding reductions, declining enrollment and rising operational costs elsewhere.

It costs just as much to run the same scope of operations even if the school buses grow empty as more students move out of the area, Logan said.

Budgetary challenges aren’t going away soon. Logan said transportation leaders must reconsider vehicle choices, utilize third parties, or make hard decisions such as cutting field trips or overtime. Wared added it’s a tough conversation because “we have the overtime because we have the need” for sports or band trips.

Ware underscored the importance of intentionality to reduce idling and deadhead (miles travelled without cargo), consolidate routes, run fuller buses and overall be more efficient. That must be balanced with student welfare since “we want to get the students to and from in a timely manner but also a safe manner,” she said.

Muirbrook and Logan praised the student transportation industry for being a close-knit group whose members converse and brainstorm solutions to budget issues.

“Phone a friend,” Ware agreed.

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Three Practical Transportation Shifts

The first of three practical transportation shifts advised was to align transportation decisions with student access and attendance goals.

Serving special education, medically fragile, or McKinney-Vento eligible students is an important piece of the puzzle, Muirbrook said. He noted that adding these students to existing routes and buses is a different consideration than if they need new routes or vehicles.

Ware spoke to continuing economic hardships resulting in more McKinney-Vento eligible students. Logan reiterated the need for data, which shows a spike near the winter holiday season but indicates that the overall trend is increasing.

The second tip was to improve efficiency by matching student need with the right transportation mode, which Pallotta noted may not always be the yellow school bus.

“This is an outcome-driven approach,” she said. She advised considering enrollment data and planned routes then asking, “How do I plug this into the choices I have, or do I need to introduce a choice I don’t have to gain more efficiency and flexibility?”

For students with special needs, Ware noted that the many considerations include ride times, student disabilities, level of service needed and more. “We are very creative,” she confirmed.

“I’m sure there’s a lot of both art and science to how you do that,” Pallotta quipped.

Logan agreed, “Our goal is to get them there, and that’s what we do.”

Ware stated that the team first looks to put a student on a yellow school bus and, if that doesn’t fit, works with EverDriven for alternative transportation. Logan noted that this partnership helps fill a need where the district requires alternatives.

Having the flexibility to choose the most appropriate options lets transportation teams focus on safety, student support and affordability amid increased homelessness or school closures, Muirbrook noted.

Lastly, the panel advised connecting transportation outcomes to the district’s 2026 – 2027 budget request.

Clear communication and avoiding surprises, Logan said, have resulted in transportation having a seat at the table in Garland ISD and securing buy-in from administration.

Muirbrook noted that investing in student attendance is not only valuable for the children but often ends up cyclically paying off financially for the district.

“Have multiple tools in your kit so you have the flexibility to do the right thing for the right student within your budget,” Pallotta said.

Watch the webinar on demand. 

The post ‘Prepare and Pivot,’ Advises Texas Student Transportation Director appeared first on School Transportation News.