The Ohio State Highway Patrol (OSHP) is reminding motorists to obey school bus traffic laws and avoid distractions as approximately 800,000 students who use school transportation daily prepare to return to classrooms across the state, many returning as early as next week.

The patrol’s back-to-school safety message emphasizes that motorists, school districts and transportation personnel all play a role in protecting students. The agency is also reminding districts to keep school bus inspections current before vehicles begin transporting children.

“Every student in Ohio deserves a safe ride to and from school, and that safety is a responsibility all drivers share,” Gov. Mike DeWine said in a news release. “As summer ends, and school buses get back out on the road, I encourage all drivers to stay alert, eliminate distractions and follow the posted speed limit.”

Ohio has recorded 7,179 traffic crashes involving school buses since 2021, according to OSHP. Six of those crashes were fatal, with one of those being a school-aged student.

That student was 11-year-old Aiden Clark, who was killed in a Northwestern Local Schools bus crash near Springfield on Aug. 22, 2023, the district’s first day of classes. The bus was transporting 52 students west on State Route 41 when an eastbound minivan crossed the center line, according to investigators.

The bus driver swerved in an attempt to avoid the minivan, but the vehicles collided and the bus overturned. Clark was ejected and died at the scene. Twenty-three other students were injured, including one who was initially reported in serious condition. The crash marked Ohio’s first on-board school bus passenger fatality since 2010.

The minivan driver, Hermanio Joseph, was later convicted of involuntary manslaughter and vehicular homicide and sentenced to nine to 13 and half years in prison.

Following the crash, DeWine created the Ohio School Bus Safety Working Group to examine seat belts and other student transportation safety issues. The group later issued 17 recommendations addressing areas that included driver training, bus maintenance, and community education.

The Ohio State Highway Patrol said motorists should review the state’s requirements for approaching stopped school buses, particularly as buses return to regular routes, and more students gather near roadways at bus stops to board or exit.

When a school bus stops with its red warning lights flashing and stop arm extended, vehicles traveling in both directions must stop at least 10 feet away on two-lane roads and roads containing a center turn lane.

On roads with four or more lanes and divided highways, only motorists traveling in the same direction as the bus must stop. Drivers approaching from the opposite direction may proceed cautiously. Motorists required to stop must remain stationary until the bus moves again or its driver signals that they may proceed.

The agency’s school bus safety efforts also include vehicle inspections intended to identify mechanical problems before buses leave transportation facilities.

The patrol’s Licensing and Commercial Standards section conducted 39,488 school bus inspections in 2025. Although Ohio law requires school transportation vehicles to receive one inspection annually, the patrol performs a second inspection.

“Our highest priority is the safety of Ohio’s children, which is why our inspection process begins long before they step foot in the classroom,” Ohio State Highway Patrol Superintendent Col. Charles A. Jones said in the release.

According to the agency, the inspections allow personnel to identify and correct mechanical issues before they create a potential safety risk for students or other road users. The process is intended to confirm that school buses are functioning properly before they begin operating on the road.

The agency also encouraged members of the public to safely dial #677 to report reckless or impaired motorists and suspected drug activity.

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Related: Ohio School Bus Drivers Complete Annual Safety Training
Related: Motorist Dead After Colliding with Ohio School Bus During Drop Off
Related: Ohio Student Dies, Dozens Injured in School Bus Crash
Related: Ohio-Based Training Program Equips School Bus Drivers to Handle Active Threats

The post Ohio State Highway Patrol Urges Motorists to Prioritize School Bus Safety appeared first on School Transportation News.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration-sponsored Child Passenger Safety on School Buses National Training returns to the 2026 Transporting Students with Disabilities and Special Needs Conference and Trade Show but on a new day.

The all-day, hands-on training is scheduled for Thursday, Nov. 5 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Embassy Suites Dallas-Frisco Convention Center. The new date places the course one day before the main TSD Conference educational program begins. Participation is limited to 50 people. Separate registration and fees are required.

The course provides an overview of the proper use of child safety restraint systems on school buses, with a particular focus on preschool-age children and students with disabilities. Classroom instruction and videos are combined with guided hands-on practice, allowing participants to work directly with the equipment and procedures discussed during the seminar.

NHTSA’s supporting curriculum demonstrates the installation and use of rear-facing and forward-facing child restraint systems as well as safety vests. The agency identifies pupil transportation administrators and supervisors, school bus drivers and monitors who transport young children — including preschoolers, Head Start students and infants — among the course’s intended audience.

The hands-on component allows participants to practice correctly installing restraint systems and positioning children under the guidance of experienced instructors. The format is designed to help transportation professionals apply the course material when training staff or working with students on daily routes.

Nationally certified child passenger safety technicians who complete the training will earn 3.5 continuing education units.

The seminar may be purchased as an add-on to the TSD main conference registration or taken as a stand-alone course. This allows transportation professionals to attend the specialized training, even if they are unable to participate in the entire conference.

The 2026 TSD Conference and Trade Show is scheduled for Nov. 4-10 in Frisco, with the Transportation Director Summit being held the first two days. The event brings together school transportation, special education and safety professionals for specialized training, keynote presentations, breakout sessions, networking and a trade show featuring equipment and services designed to support students with disabilities and special needs.

Register and view the latest agenda at TSDConference.com.

Main conference registration is available at the $399 Super Early Bird rate through Friday, Aug. 7. The NHTSA training requires an additional fee and must be selected separately during registration.

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Related: (STN Podcast E284) Always Something to Learn: Special Needs Takeaways from TSD 2025
Related: (STN Podcast E283) Onsite at TSD 2025 (Part 2/2): Solution-Driven Partners + TD of the Year Interview
Related: (STN Podcast E282) Onsite at TSD 2025 (Part 1/2): Mission-Critical Partners for Special Needs Transportation

The post New Date Set for NHTSA Child Passenger Safety Training at TSD appeared first on School Transportation News.

A webinar explored how school districts are responding to ongoing driver shortages by maximizing existing staff through better routing, unified technology and data-driven decision-making.

School bus driver shortages remain the biggest operational challenge facing student transportation departments heading into the 2026-2027 school year, but some school districts are adapting by making better use of existing drivers rather than waiting for the labor market to recover. Rick Dunn, vice president of customer engagement at Zonar, shared this and more findings Thursday from the 2026 Back-to-School Readiness Report conducted in July by Zonar and School Transportation News, based on a survey of 128 transportation directors, operations managers and fleet leaders.

The webinar discussed how technology can help transportation departments improve efficiency despite staffing shortages and budget constraints.

Driver Availability Remains the Top Concern

Dunn said the survey found driver availability outweighs every other operational concern for transportation leaders.

“Here’s the headline: 75 percent named driver availability as their number one concern heading into fall. Not budget, not equipment, not routing, driver availability, and that number holds steady across every fleet size and every kind of operation,” he underscored.

The challenge extends beyond hiring, Dunn explained. An aging workforce, shrinking recruiting pools and limited budgets mean what many in the industry have thought for decades: The driver shortage is a long-term operational issue.

“This isn’t a one-year story,” Dunn said. “The state of student transportation data confirms the driver shortage stays at a top focus for the next two to three years. So, whatever we build to handle it needs to hold up for a while, not just get us through this fall.”

Only 15 percent of surveyed school districts reported they were fully prepared for the new school year, while most still had at least one significant item left unresolved before classes began. Dunn noted that compressed summer schedules and limited staffing leave little opportunity to complete every task before students return.

Technology Can Improve Productivity

Rather than focusing exclusively on recruitment, Dunn encouraged districts to maximize the productivity of the drivers they already have.

“The other path is to multiply the drivers you already have with tighter routing and coaching that retrains instead of polices,” he said. “Routing software means less wasted time and better coverage. Coaching means drivers who stick around instead of burning out. Put those two together, and that’s how you multiply hours without adding headcount.”

The survey reflected that strategy. Routing software ranked as districts’ top planned technology investment, followed by student ridership tracking and driver coaching tools. Dunn said those priorities directly address the operational challenges transportation departments face every day.

He also urged districts to simplify operations by reducing the number of disconnected software systems that dispatchers manage.

“We heard about operations running GPS with one vendor, cameras with a second, routing with a third, and student tracking with a fourth,” Dunn said. “Even when a couple of those systems technically integrate, you still don’t get one view. You get four logins and a prayer.”

Integrated Systems Reduce Daily Friction

Valeria Ríos, Zonar’s product marketing manager, said technology should eliminate administrative hurdles so transportation teams can focus on serving students.

“The problem is not only the number of tools. It’s also that there is no process and no staff to manage them all,” she noted. “When you consolidate, you’re not only removing logins. You’re also removing the friction that takes up your team’s entire day.”

She shared that integrated platforms like Zonar Bus Suite also help transportation departments respond faster when drivers call out unexpectedly.

“A driver calls out at 6:15 [a.m.]. In Bus Suite, you split her route, you reassign the vehicle, you message a substitute driver, and that’s all in one screen, in one moment,” she said.

Technology can also make substitute drivers more successful by providing the information they need to stay on schedule.

“We’re going to make it easy by assigning a route. You can follow the app. It will give you turn-by-turn directions. It will tell you which students you need to pick up,” Ríos explained. “That’s kind of where Bus Suite comes from. It’s actually to address all of their needs from the transportation industry.”

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Related: How Technology Can Assist the 2026 State of Student Transportation
Related: School Bus Fuel Innovation, Technology Education Meet at STN EXPO West
Related: (STN Podcast E302) Technology Tools for Bus Drivers: No More Struggling with Paper Route Sheets
Related: How Technology Powers Daily Student Transportation Operations

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Better Data Supports Better Decisions

The presenters also highlighted the role of analytics in helping districts stretch limited staffing resources. Ríos said route utilization tools can identify underused buses, recommend better vehicle assignments and provide transportation leaders with the information they need to consolidate routes when necessary.

“It will give you all the data points you need to be able to consolidate those runs and make the most out of every driver that you already have,” she declared.

Dunn advised districts to evaluate their existing technology before investing in additional products.

“Three things to remember: Run one picture of readiness, multiply your driver hours instead of just chasing headcount, and sweat what you already own before you buy something new,” he concluded.

To support those goals, Dunn and Ríos demonstrated how Zonar Bus Suite integrates routing, dispatch, live vehicle tracking, student ridership, navigation, field trip management and parent communication into a single platform. They emphasized that consolidating data and workflows can reduce manual tasks, improve visibility and help transportation departments make better use of limited staff while maintaining service levels.

Watch the webinar on demand.

This article was written with the assistance of AI.

The post Technology Webinar Tackles the School Bus Driver Shortage appeared first on School Transportation News.

Doherty Enterprises has launched its annual Stuff the Bus school supply drive at participating Applebee’s Neighborhood Grill + Bar restaurants across New Jersey, collecting donations for students ahead of the new school year, reported WDHA News.

According to the news report, yellow school buses will remain parked outside participating restaurants through late August, serving as visible collection points for new school supplies and monetary contributions. Donated materials will be loaded onto the buses and delivered directly to local schools or community organizations that help students prepare for classes.

The Applebee’s location in Bridgewater will reportedly accept donations through Aug. 28. The supplies collected there will benefit students at Adamsville Elementary School.

In Howell Township, the local Applebee’s will collect donations through Aug. 19. The restaurant plans to deliver the supplies to Howell Township Public Schools on Aug. 31. “Supporting the communities we serve is at the heart of everything we do,” Timothy Doherty, president of Doherty Enterprises, said via the article. “Each year, our Stuff the Bus campaign brings neighbors, guests and local organizations together at their local Applebee’s to help students start the school year with the supplies they need.”

Doherty added that seeing communities come together through the campaign and make a meaningful difference for local families is “incredible.”

In addition to collecting supplies and financial donations, some participating restaurants will reportedly organize related fundraising events, including flapjack breakfasts and bake sales. Customers are encouraged to contact their local Applebee’s to learn which fundraisers and collection activities are planned nearby.

Doherty Enterprises, which operates multiple restaurant locations throughout New Jersey, has held the Stuff the Bus campaign in previous years. The company brought the program back to support families facing the expense of purchasing notebooks, writing materials, backpacks and other classroom essentials.

Written with the Assistance of AI.

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Related: Stuff the Bus Event Provides Supplies for More Than 16,000 Tennessee Students
Related: Arizona Annual Stuff the Bus Back to School Drive Returns
Related: Salvation Army Hosts Stuff the Bus Donation Drive in Indiana
Related: North Carolina School’s ‘Stuff the Bus’ Drive Returns to Support Local Students

The post Applebee’s Brings Back Stuff the Bus School Supply Drive in New Jersey appeared first on School Transportation News.

The Clark County School District (CCSD) in Nevada is reviewing its school bus routes and preparing to expand its transportation workforce as new school start times take effect for the 2026-2027 academic year, reported 8 News Now.

Students are reportedly scheduled to return to classrooms in two weeks under a revised bell schedule that will allow high school students to begin classes later. The changes are also expected to affect school bus routes and traffic patterns throughout Clark County.

Under the new schedule, middle schools will generally begin at 7:30 a.m., high schools at 8:30 a.m., and elementary schools at 9:15 a.m. District high schools currently begin at 7 a.m., while elementary and middle school starting times vary but are generally 8 or 9 a.m.

Amber Rideout, the district’s assistant superintendent of transportation, said the transportation plan remains under review. CCSD operates what it identifies as the nation’s largest school bus fleet.

“We are still working and reviewing the routes,” Rideout told local news reporters. “What we do see is that there may be a need to increase some additional drivers.”

The CCSD approved the start-time changes in January. The decision reportedly included a one-time cost of $5.6 million to purchase additional school buses and hire 51 more drivers. The changes are also expected to create approximately $5.3 million in annual expenses.

Rideout said the district anticipates adding routes based on projections from a survey conducted before the schedule change. Transportation officials are also examining opportunities to consolidate routes and maintain efficiency.

The district previously said it plans to use bond funding to cover costs associated with expanding the bus fleet.

School bus crash data obtained by local news reporters showed crashes increased during the fall from 2023 through 2025. Rideout said sending buses onto the roads later could improve visibility and potentially reduce crashes. “My hope is that with the increase of visibility by just daylight that would actually prevent some of that because there will be greater awareness and visibility,” Rideout said.

District officials are expected to finalize routes as the first day of school approaches.

Written with the assistance of AI.

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Related: Safety in Sight
Related: Helping First-Time Riders Approach the School Bus with Confidence
Related: Stuff the Bus Drive Launches on California’s Central Coast Helping Students
Related: Arizona Annual Stuff the Bus Back to School Drive Returns

The post Las Vegas-Area Developing Transportation Plan Ahead of New School Start Times appeared first on School Transportation News.

A local mother is seeking additional donations to fill the remaining backpacks collected for an annual Stuff the Bus campaign benefiting students in need, reported WABI 5.

For the sixth consecutive year, Cheryl Morris is collecting backpacks and classroom supplies for Community Action’s Stuff the Bus event in memory of her son, Adam MacDonald, who died in April 2021.

MacDonald was known for his generosity and donated school supplies to the campaign each year, according to the news report. His dedication to the effort included making a trip to Walmart immediately after being discharged from the hospital to ensure he did not miss the annual collection.

Following his death, Morris continued the tradition in his honor by gathering supplies and encouraging community members to support local students as they prepare to return to school.

“Last year I collected 305 backpacks. I exceeded that number this year by 5,” Morris said via the article. “I have 310 backpacks now. Right now, 232 backpacks are filled with school supplies. I still have 78 backpacks that need an item or two to finish filling them.”

Although Morris has already surpassed last year’s backpack total, she is asking community members to help provide the remaining materials needed to complete all 310 bags. Donations can include common classroom necessities that can be placed inside backpacks before they are distributed.

People interested in contributing or learning more about the collection can join “Help Stuff the Bus in Honor of Adam MacDonald” on Facebook. The page includes information about the campaign and ways community members can support the effort.

The donations will help supply students attending the Back to School Bash, scheduled for Aug. 14 at 10 a.m. at 771 Main St. in Presque Isle.

The annual event aims to help families obtain supplies their children need for the upcoming academic year. Through the collection, Morris is working to ensure the remaining backpacks are ready for distribution while preserving her son’s tradition of helping students in his community.

The campaign is nearing its conclusion, leaving a limited amount of time for residents to donate the items still needed to fill the final 78 backpacks.

Written with the assistance of AI.

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Related: Stuff the Bus Event Provides Supplies for More Than 16,000 Tennessee Students
Related: Stuff the Bus Drive Launches on California’s Central Coast Helping Students
Related: Go Riteway Hosts ‘Drive the Bus’ Events Amid Wisconsin Driver Shortage
Related: Florida School District to Host Transportation Hiring Event

The post Maine Mother Continues Son’s Legacy Through Stuff the Bus Drive appeared first on School Transportation News.

In June 2026, Zonar and School Transportation News surveyed 128 transportation professionals across the United States to understand where student transportation departments stand heading into the 2026-2027 school year. Showcasing fleet sizes from under 50 buses to 300 or more, and spanning roles such as transportation directors, operations managers and fleet leads, the result is a clear picture of the workforce gaps, budget pressure and technology decisions shaping the season ahead.

Inside the report:

• Why driver staffing remains the defining pressure of the back-to-school season
• The real distance between “mostly prepared” and ready for the first day
• How flat and shrinking budgets are reshaping technology decisions for 2026
• Where the 64% who are still investing are putting their technology dollars this year
• Who actually holds final purchase approval, and how long the process takes
• The moves that close preparation gaps before the first bus rolls

Download the complimentary report to see how your fleet compares.

Fill out the form below and then check your email to get the report.

The post (Free White Paper) 2026 Back-to-School Readiness Report appeared first on School Transportation News.

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• Students from the age of 11 to 18 can enroll at career-focused summer camps at Lakeshore College. 
• The June camps focused on culinary arts, manufacturing and information technology careers. 
• The camps introduce students to high-demand careers when they’re young, which leaders hope will spark their interest and help fill worker shortages.

In mid-June, roughly a dozen young teens wearing white chef coats lined up at stations inside a classroom resembling a real industrial kitchen. 

They gingerly cut slices of avocado, cucumber and mamenori — soy paper — before finally using a bamboo sheet to roll the ingredients into a log of sushi. 

Their instructions, delivered by a Lakeshore College instructor, looked much like lessons given in a real college class. But the students weren’t getting graded — they were attending the college’s summer camp, designed to introduce them at a young age to high-demand jobs in the region. 

Across the Cleveland, Wisconsin, campus that week, students between the ages of 11 and 18 learned the basics of culinary, manufacturing and information technology careers. It’s all part of a growing push by education and workforce leaders to expose students to high-demand careers long before they graduate high school, hoping early exploration will help fill worker shortages. 

In just three days, Haiden Taylor learned to cook hummus, tzatziki, pizza, and, her favorite, doner kebab. It was her second year enrolling in the camp. As she heads into her senior year of high school, she’s now considering culinary as a career.  

“I like working with people. I like working with my hands. I really don’t see myself at a desk job,” Taylor said. 

It all offers kids much more exploration and hands-on learning than Electro and Maintenance Mechanic instructor Kaven Lewis had as a kid. Then, people discouraged skilled trade work, he said. Events like the summer camp feel like proof that this is changing today. 

“It was … ‘Go to college, get an education,’” Lewis said. “Now it’s like, ‘Trade school, that’s where all the money is going to be.’ It’s kind of cool to be in the middle of that transition … It’s cool to see these kids coming in and being more interested in that blue collar, hands-on type of career.” 

Opening students’ eyes

On the other side of campus, a group of children between ages 11 and 13 appeared dwarfed by the cavernous garage they gathered in. 

The children focused intently on assembling a mousetrap-powered car kit, hoping to build the fastest car to win the drag race that took place in the hallway. 

The activity involved trial and error — one student’s car detonated at the starting line — but in the process, they learned how different factors impacted speed, torque and the distance the car traveled.

Down the hall, in the welding and fabrication lab, students learned to shape metal into spatulas. When they were asked how many of them took it as an opportunity to engineer gifts for the upcoming Father’s Day holiday, nearly every student’s hand shot in the air. 

About half of the students who come to camp are already dead set on what they want to do when they grow up, said Ben Reynolds, chef and culinary arts instructor. The other half have no clue. 

“It’s really fun to see the ones that aren’t sure, and then by day three they’re like, ‘yup!’” Reynolds said. 

That was the case for student Claude Judd, a 10th grader who signed up for culinary camp just for fun. 

The lessons “definitely opened my eyes a little bit,” she said, and she’d now consider a career in culinary arts. 

Workers needed

Initially supported by grants and now funded by the college, the summer camps have been put on by Lakeshore for years. The subjects and careers students explore vary annually based on feedback from college faculty and the campers themselves. 

The careers highlighted this summer — including manufacturing, culinary arts and information technology — are among those employers in northeast Wisconsin have struggled to fill.

For example, restaurant cook gigs are one of the fastest-growing in northeast Wisconsin, projected to add 740 jobs between 2022 and 2032, state data shows. 

Cooks and food preparation workers in the northeast region made an average salary of $34,550 in 2025. Data shows such academic programs have mixed results in actually setting participants up to make more money. According to an analysis of earnings data from Open Campus and The HEA Group, not all culinary programs in the state lead students to higher earnings than the average high school graduate. 

In contrast, welding and metal working jobs are expected to grow by about 10% during the same period, adding 430 jobs. Technical college job training programs for these careers usually set students up to make at least $15,000 more than the average high school graduate, and sometimes up to nearly $30,000 more. 

Even if students don’t leave camp committed to a particular career path, college leaders say they’re gaining confidence and communication skills. 

“At this point in their collegiate journey they’re getting that question of, ‘What do you want to do?’” Reynolds said.

The philosophy that drives the summer camp program is similar to what Reynolds tells his teenage son.

“I don’t expect you to know what you want to do your whole life. I just expect you to go experience things and try things and find out what makes you want to get out of bed.”

Miranda Dunlap reports on pathways to success in northeast Wisconsin, working in partnership with Open Campus. Email her at mdunlap@wisconsinwatch.org.

Lakeshore College summer camp introduces children and teens to hands-on, in-demand jobs is a post from Wisconsin Watch, a non-profit investigative news site covering Wisconsin since 2009. Please consider making a contribution to support our journalism.