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State Responses on School Consensus among state directors of pupil transportation is that anti-terrorism programs are vital for school bus safety. This is the second article in a two-part series; click here to read part one. By Bill Paul For years, school districts have offered valuable training to school bus drivers on handling emergencies, ranging from natural disasters to crashes. The training has typically been provided during in-service training programs. But the 21 st century has introduced a new fear, one that until 9/11 wasn’t fully realized on a domestic level.
The fall of 2002 saw the first industry effort to address the potential, when the National School Transportation Association polled its members to determine how threats to security and terrorist attacks may have affected their operations. NSTA found that the majority of bus contractors provided some kind of formal or informal training on heightened security concerns, and how to deal with terrorism, though not much. Almost half of the respondents focused on training that dealt with children who may have been affected by terrorism or other violent incidents. The survey also found that, despite this increase in training, little else in terms of security measures or equipment had been added to transportation systems infrastructure. The terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon changed the climate. President Bush signed a law designating school buses as a mass transportation system, meaning certain crimes committed against school buses are now investigated, tried and punished as Federal crimes under the Patriot Act. School Transportation News recently surveyed state directors of pupil transportation nationwide on their state’s plans to reduce the possibility of a terrorist incident onboard their school buses. The following are among the replies the magazine received by press time. New Developments in School Bus Security New Mexico is in the final stages of implementing a school bus security program to fight a possible terror attack. State director Gilbert Perea said the state will provide a four-hour training session this summer for the state’s 300 school bus driver instructors. The “School Bus Driver Security Training Program” trains school bus drivers on the knowledge and skills required to effectively identify and report perceived security threats, as well as to appropriately react to actual security incidents. Perea said he is working with the Office of Homeland Security and the National Research Panel to help guide the program, which includes representatives from the Transportation Research Board, the National Transit Board and the Transportation Safety Administration. He added that the state will require every school bus driver to be exposed to the awareness training by mid-September. The training will be incorporated as part of the pre-service requirements for any new employee. In addition to New Mexico ’s new security program, myriad publications and recommended safety and security guidelines have been issued nationwide. The National Association of State Directors of Pupil Transportation Services is working on a policy statement regarding school bus security. A published report is expected by mid-year, though a final publication date has not been set. In 2002, the National Association of Pupil Transportation released a handbook that details schools emergency incident guidelines for dealing with a terror attack on a school bus. The handbook asks transportation officials the following questions:
The NAPT handbook expanded on a similar guide, also published in 2002, by Minnesota . Those guidelines treat the bus driver as the first line of defense in dealing with security issues and recognizing potential threats. It calls for advanced education of both the driver and students to increase awareness and sets forth proper procedures for dealing with verbal and written threats, physical gestures or contact, and weapons, bombs, or in the event of a crash. Bus companies and transportation officials are called upon to set more stringent safety guidelines and attach special value to safety training. States with School Bus Security Measures in Place In January of this year, the California Department of Education offered “System Security Awareness for Transportation Employees.” The course was adapted for pupil transportation from a security program the National Transit Institute developed with Federal Transportation Authority monies for the public mass transit industry. It defines the role of student transporters in ensuring a safe environment for students, and implements policies, such as what to look for and how to deal with anthrax and other suspicious substances, and to help reduce security vulnerabilities and to minimize harm on the school bus. In response to heightened transportation concerns, Marion Edick of the New York Department of Education’s Association of School Bus Management called a committee to develop recommended school bus security guidelines that transportation departments could use in conjunction with school districts. Paul Overbaugh, who is also the transportation supervisor at Greenville Central School District , was named to chair the committee. Overbaugh said the committee worked the New York State Police, which had already developed a school bus security policy for the Rockland County , located just outside of New York City . The state’s committee presented its emergency response plan at last summer’s New York Association of Pupil Transportation. Included was a four-page checklist dealing with security of b uses in storage or the bus garage/facility; buses in the storage area or bus yard; buses in transit; observations by drivers; pre- and post-trip inspections, and on-scene incidents. “We realize that so often people overlook the school bus as a target,” Overbaugh said. “View that bus as a classroom, as a school.” The committee also recommends:
“You need to look at your school safety plan and see how these guidelines fit,” Overbaugh added. Georgia has one of the most comprehensive school bus security programs nationwide. Headed by GEMA, statewide workshops have been held since 2000 to help school districts implement security plans in their everyday transportation operations. GEMA teaches bus drivers the importance of screening riders – and anyone approaching the bus – for weapons and explosives, how to identify suspicious substances and powders, and how to deal with hostage situations. Steve Harris, GEMA school safety project manager, said the program recommends all buses come equipped with rooftop numbering to assistance law enforcement with identifying and tracking the bus, as well as employing a Global Positioning System. In addition, GEMA trains school districts how to properly store buses at home or at the fleet garage, and urges transportation departments to work closely with local authorities on developing emergency exercises. To deal with such incidents, Iowa released a 14-minute video presentation, entitled "Terrorism on School Buses," at last summer’s in-service for bus drivers and transportation officials (see related story on pg. 42). Developed from content obtained from GEMA, the video also touches on what to do should an intruder board a yellow school bus. “The video gets into the possible causes for some sort of terror attack on a school bus, as well as the weapons or explosive devices that may be used,” said State Director Max Christensen. “It also gets into what a driver can do to either help prevent an attack on their bus or spot a problem before it develops.” In 1996, Utah was the site of a school bus hijacking, in which the student hijacker shot the bus driver and then took police on a high-speed chase. The suspect was eventually killed when he slammed the school bus into a house. As a result, State Director Brent Huffman said school districts are encouraged to involve local law enforcement and local fire departments when performing simulated emergencies including simulated terrorist hijackings. The Planning Stages In Kentucky , neither the Department of Education, the Kentucky Board of Education nor the Kentucky Center for School Safety has developed specific anti-terrorism protocols for school buses, said Linda Gross of the Department of Education’s Office of Communications. “Our school bus drivers are trained to respond to crisis situations in general, and those protocols would likely remain in place in the event of terrorist activities,” she said. However, Madison County Schools in central Kentucky has developed more specific training, with help from local and federal government agencies, because of a nerve gas storage facility in the area. Patricia Hoskins, the county’s assistant director of transportation, said all adults at certain high-risk schools received driver training. In case of emergency, they can transport students to neighboring counties and out of harm’s way, she said. Delaware state transportation director Ron Love , a retired military officer, said several security-related documents were distributed and discussed at a statewide transportation supervisor meeting early in December 2003, about a month after California state transportation director John Green’s school bus terrorism presentation in Salt Lake City . “One of our school districts will conduct a pilot test of a school bus location tracking system that can be added to its route planning software,” said Love. Rodney McKnight of the Idaho Department of Education reported that Green will present on the subject of school bus security at the state’s pupil transportation conference this summer. “We then anticipate conducting regional workshops in three different locations of the state during the week of June 28,” McKnight told School Transportation News. “We will also most likely update our driver and driver trainer curriculum, but that will take us a little time.” State directors in Indiana , North Carolina and Wyoming report they’ve also lined up Green to present at their state conferences later this year. “ Indiana school bus drivers are required by state statute to attend an annual state wide safety in-service training,” said Pete Baxter of the Indiana Department of Education. “Tentatively, the 2004 agenda will contain a program segment on transportation system security.” State director Bruce Little said Colorado has provided sessions at its summer workshop, both on presentations and discussions of what some districts have done so far. Little is also the transportation department's representative on the state emergency response council. Preparing for the 14 th NCST In light of these developments on the state level, potential security threats against school buses clearly have the attention of school bus officials. Indeed, there is a growing consensus within the school bus community that preparation is the be An agenda item for the next year’s 14 th National Conference on School Transportation (NCST) in Warrensburg , Mo. , is the development of a segment on security and emergency preparedness. Baxter of Indiana is chairing the writing committee developing the report. “We are working on (language) that will provide end-user information on school transportation security,” Baxter said. “We are trying to build the segment around policy considerations and security readiness including equipment, facilities, and training of transportation personnel. This goes beyond drivers to dispatchers, support staff, technicians, supervisors, central office folks, in other words the whole transportation department.” Baxter added that preliminary discussions are taking place on developing a school bus equipment guide for emergency responder personnel. The guide might include such data as the makes and models of school buses, construction information, emergency exits, and diagrams, so responders would have access to information they might need if an incident involves a school bus. Additional information on the 14 th NCST is available at www.14thncst.org. Reprinted with permission from the April 2004 edition of School Transportation News. All rights reserved. Copyright by STN Media, Inc. |
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