PSD parent steps up for her child, other students as a bus operator
For Jessica Bard, getting behind the wheel of a big yellow school bus is as much about being a mentor as a navigator.
The Poudre School District bus router and substitute operator has worked for the school district for five years. Promoted to the position of router last year, she is back on the bus due to the national shortage of drivers. For PSD, the shortage means about 40 fewer operators are on the roads than in previous school years, and thousands of fewer students are riding the bus to school as a result.
The work of a driver, she said, is fulfilling because you get to know students a little bit more every time, they come through the folding doors. Bus operators become advisors and champions to their students.
“You know their personalities, what's going on, when they get new shoes. You got hugs prior to COVID, and you develop a relationship with the kids,” she said, pointing out that drivers get to spend more time with students than people may think. “You become a part of their life.”
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