DUNCANNON, Pa. – Pennsylvania Department of Education Acting Secretary Eric Hagarty and the Pennsylvania School Bus Association (PSBA) visited Duncannon to tour the Rohrer Bus facility in and highlight the critical role that school bus drivers play across the commonwealth.
“As we work to ensure that students in all areas—rural, urban, and suburban alike—have access to a high-quality education, we must also provide access to safe, reliable transportation to and from school,” said Acting Secretary Hagarty. “School bus drivers are critical in that mission, and PDE is committed to supporting this industry as it works to recruit individuals to the workforce.”
Last October, PennDOT and PDE reached out to approximately 375,000 drivers with Commercial Driver’s Licenses (CDL) to issue a survey that will connect interested drivers with school entities. To date, more than 1,700 individuals have expressed an interest in serving as a bus driver. However, there is still a need for between 2,000 and 3,000 more drivers in Pennsylvania.
“On behalf of the PSBA and the entire school transportation industry, we are thrilled about the Department’s support in creating further awareness about our industry and the important role our people play in the educational system by safely transporting our most precious cargo, and the challenges we are facing,” said Vice President of Rohrer Bus David Schrantz.
PSBA has been working to address the driver shortage by launching a multi-faceted recruitment campaign. PSBA developed YouBehindTheWheel.com, a microsite designed to educate people about the school bus industry and get them interested in becoming a driver, and SchoolBusHero.com, a free job portal that PSBA members can use to advertise open positions in their company. The organization also created a digital ad campaign, a Facebook ad campaign, and a YouTube ad campaign, which have been viewed collectively millions of times across the commonwealth.
Individuals interested in becoming bus drivers can fill out the PA School Bus Driver Interest Form online.
The Pennsylvania School Bus Association consists of over 300 school transportation contractors and industry partners who have come together to be a strong voice for school transportation safety and the school transportation contracting industry. Its mission is to provide programs, education, and services to promote and foster the highest degree of safety in the transportation of school children and strengthen the quality of student transportation through professional management.
For more information about Pennsylvania’s education policies and programs, please visit the Department of Education’s website.
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