Special-ized Training

Drivers on special needs routes have a number of options
for receiving training from many levels

By Stephane Babcock

There is no general profile for a special needs student. The definition includes a wide spectrum of children who look at the world in any number of different ways than most. Currently, there are five million special needs students who are afforded an appropriate education through their individualized education program, or IEP. Of this number, the industry has had some difficulty on extracting the number of students whose IEPs include home to school transportation.

To best serve those students on their way to and from school, drivers and monitors go through training that covers not only the loading and unloading requirements for certain students, but different types of disabilities, their related behaviors and specialized evacuation techniques. Training can come from any number of sources at many different levels, including the local school district, the state and some national conferences.

Contractor Training
School bus contractors whose reach spans into several different states around the country use programs that cover issues related to special needs no matter what region they live in. In some companies, even drivers who never work a special needs route are given the appropriate training.

“The program is specifically designed for those drivers and attendants who transport children with disabilities, but with today’s inclusion of special needs children, all drivers will be trained in transportation issues regarding special needs children,” said Liz Valdes, a spokesperson for First Student. “Individuals who deal with students with disabilities need to know how to assist them, to help make the transition from home to school and back again a safe one.”

First Student’s drivers are trained when they are initially hired and receive additional training on a case by case basis, based on the needs of the routes. Drivers learn about the types of student behaviors that are manifested by the disability and how to deal with those behaviors, what to do in the event of an emergency that would require an evacuation and how to safely do it, and safe loading and unloading and securing of all special needs passengers, according to Valdes.

Like First Student, Durham School Services also gives all its new hires the necessary training, as well as at least one annual refresher course during one of their safety meetings. Drivers who transport disabled students are also given in-house student management techniques and go through additional modules to learn about the differences among disabled students.

“Although disabled/special needs student transportation creates more challenges than regular education student transportation, we consider all training important,” said Tiffini Bloniarz, a spokesperson for Durham. “Regardless of the capabilities of the students, safety is the first priority, and we put equal emphasis on all our training.”

Conference Training
Many transportation directors spoken to pointed to the annual National Conference and Exhibition on Transporting Students with Disabilities and Preschoolers. In its 17th year, the conference focuses on special needs transportation, which includes preschool populations.

“I am confident that the special needs training offered in this conference is, undisputedly, the best available in this country,” said Roseann Schwaderer, president of Edupro Group and the event’s sponsor and chair. “It’s a reputation we work continually to deserve.”

The conference uses a tenured faculty of eight people who remain consistent from year to year and who are encouraged to make themselves as accessible as possible to attendees. Transportation directors leave the workshops with ample information to bring back to their districts.

“Most of what I have learned has been at the Transporting Students with Disabilities & Preschoolers conferences,” said Janice Graniero, EC transportation coordinator for Onslow County Schools in Jacksonville, N.C. “I pass the information on to the drivers and safety assistants at regular training sessions throughout the year.”

The event also gives the industry a chance to connect with peers from around the U.S.

“Several years ago, on the final day of the conference, a young woman who was attending for the first time came to me and said: ‘I’m new to transportation, and when I came here I didn’t know anybody. Now I have friends all over the country. I’ll never be alone again when I need an answer to a question about special needs transportation,’” said Schwaderer.

Local Instruction
Many school districts as well as Head Start centers train their drivers at the local level with either nationally developed programs or homegrown courses. Directors can chose from a number of certified sources, including the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Transporting Students with Special Needs module in the school bus driver in-service safety series, which is currently in the process of being revised. Districts can also purchase special needs transportation curriculum from the Pupil Transportation Safety Institute. Other schools use a team of professionals to train their drivers.

Pauline Gervais, director of transportation services for Denver Public Schools (DPS), uses the district’s autistic and behavioral teams to provide training for her approximate 500 drivers and paraprofessionals. Before Gervais arrived at DPS a year and a half ago, driver were given general training without specifics on the different types of behaviors they might encounter. They now receive a eight-hour preliminary class, as well as additional training as needed.

“In the past there was only very basic ‘across the board’ training,” said Gervais. “You can’t just focus in on teaching student management and discipline and how to work with different behaviors just for drivers who work with students with disabilities, you should teach all your drivers. We will focus in on drivers who are having a difficult time with their students and provide some additional training specifically for that particular driver.”

From there, training is based on need. If there is a new student coming on a route with particular behaviors that the driver might not be familiar with, Gervais will pull in members of the behavioral team. In addition to offering individualized training, team members will ride the bus with the driver so they can work out a behavior plan and provide the driver additional tools to use — what to say to the student, what may trigger them or how to de-escalate the student. DPS drivers are also given the customary training related to evacuations and related equipment.

“The other piece that’s crucial is teaching your drivers how to use the equipment, whether it’s safety vests, wheelchair tie-downs or safety seats, and also how to install them,” said Gervais. “The drivers who have been here for years are given additional training because we can’t just assume they know how to use the equipment. Equipment has changed so much in the last five years.”

Be Aware
Even after receiving training, drivers must be able to apply it to any number of situations. Dr. Linda Bluth, an expert in the field of special needs transportation and NAPT president-elect, related some reminders for special needs drivers and monitors:

• Know the characteristics of the disability population transported
• Have adequate information on board the bus to address special needs
• Speak to drivers about systemic known problems before driving the route
• Reduce surprises when possible

Visit here to read a sidebar article on New York City's travel training program.