Proposal would force TAs, custodians to drive school buses in Nash County to address driver shortage

A new policy proposal in Nash County Public Schools would make it a requirement for teachers' assistants, janitors and other positions to drive school buses.

Posted 10:02 p.m. Oct 21, 2022 — Updated 11:06 p.m. Oct 21, 2022

Keenan Willard

, WRAL eastern North Carolina reporter

A new policy proposal in Nash County Public Schools would make it a requirement for teachers' assistants, janitors and other positions to drive school buses.

It comes as the district tries to cut down on driver-staffing issues.

In a policy committee meeting on Tuesday, district leaders said there were 14 openings for full-time drivers in the district.

Leaders said the drivers they had were often calling out of work, disrupting bus routes.

“Five drivers did not show up on one day, and that’s just one school,” NCPS Superintendent Dr. Steve Ellis said. “We had 13 out Monday.”

District reps put forth a new proposal to address the issue: Dual enrollment.

The policy would require a number of different positions in the district to get certified to drive school buses. It includes teachers’ assistants, custodians, 180 reading assistants, virtual lab assistants, deans of students, reach associates, behavior specialists, restorative justice associates and child nutrition employees.

“We ask that these employees sign a bus driving agreement as a condition of new or continued employment,” NCPS District 10 representative Evelyn Bullock said.

If the policy passes, current employees would have 30 days to sign the agreement to drive buses.

New hires would have 90 days to obtain their commercial driver’s license.

“Employment will terminate immediately if the individual fails to secure the school bus driver’s license on or before their 90th day of employment,” Bullock said.

District leaders said the affected positions would see a pay boost during the hours they’re driving, and could receive overtime pay as well.

However, some teachers’ assistants in the district took issue with those statements.

Several Nash County teachers' assistants shared concerns online that they have consistently worked more than 40 hours a week without receiving overtime pay.

Some staffers believed forcing employees to drive buses would push TAs out of the district.

“If I am required to get a CDL and drive a bus, I will have to walk,” an NCPS TA anonymously told WRAL News. “Nash County Public Schools will be down TAs.”

In response, a spokesperson for Nash County Public Schools sent the following statement to WRAL News:

"Nash County Public Schools has diligently worked on student bus transportation since July. Knowing there is a statewide bus driver shortage, our district attempted to be proactive this summer and asked parents to formally request bus transportation so we could accommodate all of our families.

"Since school began in August, we worked to clean bus routes and combine them when possible to improve our departure and start times. We also leaned on our bus driver substitutes. At this point everyone on our sub list is now driving part-time or full-time for us. We have no additional subs. We reached out to the public multiple times to recruit bus drivers and explain the effects of the shortage.

"The district has exhausted its resources when it comes to making sure we have enough drivers to support our students. The most important thing for a student is to be in the classroom during instruction time. Knowing that, we proposed to the Board of Education that certain positions go through the appropriate training to drive a bus for additional pay. This idea was borrowed from neighboring school districts who do the same thing to alleviate their driver shortages. Oftentimes, school districts look to others to see what is a best practice when considering to implement a new policy or idea.

"We acknowledge that the proposed measure is concerning to some employees. We value everyone who works at Nash County Public Schools and want them to know this idea says nothing about the value of their job; instead, it is out of our need to call on our most reliable resource. Given the critical nature of this situation, the only place we can look is our internal workforce.

"Our proposal does not mean each person will be required to run a full route. If we receive enough support, it is possible for the district to distribute the extra work in a way that we are only calling on an individual one or two days a week. Any help at all ensures our overall goal to make sure students are in the classroom. The information was presented during a policy meeting for the Board of Education to consider. A formal vote will take place at the next board meeting on Nov. 7."

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