from John
How would you like a job where you have to get up at 4:30 AM, leave for work at 5:45 AM, start at 6 AM and finish at 4:30 PM. This is a job that keeps you busy until 9:30 AM and starts again at about 1:45 PM with occasional work from 11:30 AM to 12:30 PM. If you have this job then you can’t have another job. In your first year you make $46 a day and if you last for about 8 years you get about $80 a day before taxes giving you about $67 a day after taxes. And there are things you have to do for this job on your own time. This job only allows you to work about 182 days a year. So before taxes after 8 years you make about $16,000 a year which is about $13,400 a year in take home. Yet these jobs are cherished in Woodstock by the few who have these jobs.
You’re a bus driver for the Woodstock School System which includes the Academy. You drive a 15 ton bus and have earned a driver’s license that qualifies you to drive a box truck as well. But you have to fuel and clean the bus on your own time. Since you have to fuel a couple times a week, this takes about 1.5 hours total a week of your personal time not including the time it takes to keep the bus clean. In the winter if it snows you are required to use a roof rake to remove the snow from the top of the bus…on your own time. And the buses are frigid when you start them up in the winter. In one school year our buses drive a combined total of 273,000 miles not including field trips. Most have had an accident of some sort which sometimes causes you to get sued even though it wasn’t your fault.
But these bus drivers are rewarded by getting kids off on the right foot each day. Few residents understand the contributions that school bus drivers make to the development of Woodstock kids who they see and talk to every day. Some of these kids become life long friends with their drivers as Mariah did with her first bus driver before her mother’s bus started driving her. Sometimes the driver is in touch with the kid later in life and in at least one occasion made the kid’s wedding cake.
Woodstock school bus drivers perform an invaluable service to the town and the teachers and play a significant role in the kids education but few in town outside the school system can appreciate the role of the school bus driver in our society.
Every work day, I drive 35 minutes to work and see school buses in Woodstock, Eastford, Ashford, Willington, Mansfield and Tolland. This is an essential function in our education system mandated by our state. The Tables below itemize transportation for each pupil. The table for Woodstock per pupil costs shows that transportation costs per pupil has varied from $414 to $660 per pupil for the full 182 days. At an average of $537 per pupil, the daily cost for a student having a school bus driver is $2.95 per pupil per day. But the bus drivers don’t even think about this because, instead, they are dedicated to the safety and happiness of the kids.
Becki has been one of those school bus drivers for the last eight or nine years. Tomorrow she is announcing to her kids that she is going to take a leave of absence to do other things. She couldn’t just leave without telling the kids and their parents. Here is her announcement:
“Dear Parent, Guardians, and Students.
I’m writing to you to tell you that I am taking an extended leave of absence. My last day driving the bus will be this Friday, February 10th.
I do not know who will be driving the different runs that I currently drive, but do know that whomever the district assigns to these runs will be fully able to perform my duties. I would ask that you be patient as the newly assigned drivers settle into the runs. The timing of pick-ups and drop-offs may vary somewhat from the times you have been used to due to other variables that placing a number of different drivers into the runs I currently cover. I anticipate that things should settle fairly quickly and know that your children will be in competent hands.
Please accept my apologies for any stress this change creates for you and your families. I will be speaking to the kids during the week, but would appreciate any support you can provide in creating a positive anticipation in your children’s expectations for the newly assigned drivers.
I have been honored to know your children and be the first and last person of the school system to see them on a daily basis. They have brought a great sense of joy to my life and I will miss them terribly. I am looking forward to seeing them all again in the future. Until then I wish you all nothing but great days and wonderful experiences as your children continue their educational exploration.
With bittersweet feelings at this separation,
I remain yours, Mrs. Becki Leavitt”
Becki,
Thanks for all your effort!
Kevin
I can attest first-hand to the care and concern that Becki shows to the students. That includes students who don’t even ride her bus.
We have never lived on Becki’s bus route. Yet, I met Becki because she had become friendly with my son. My son proudly introduced me to her when I visited the school one day. They’ve stayed friendly ever since and Becki has gone out of her way to share her time, generosity, an even her GPS with our family.
I’ve said it here before and I’ll affirm it again, it makes a world of difference to know that my children are being driven to school and back everyday by their neighbors; neighbors who get to know each child and their family; neighbors who take a personal interest in each child. Whatever the cost in dollars and cents, it’s a small price to pay for security and peace of mind.
I’m very grateful to Becki and all of the bus drivers who work hard everyday to serve our children.
All of my best to you Becki, as your journey takes you down a different path. Thank you for the care you’ve shown to the children who have been entrusted to you – and to a few extra kids I know that weren’t assigned to your care but found their way to you anyway.
I’m so very glad that they did.
I’m having a hard time with the math of driving 273,000 miles a year
Thanks, Kevin and Newcomer.
Doubtful – The buses run about 1500 miles a day (+/-) and there are 182 days in the school year. The figure is probably on the conservative side as it doesn’t include field trips or uneven days when we have additional Academy only runs.
I agree, Doubtful, since I don’t think Woodstock’s ever had a bus make it that many miles over a lifetime!
I certainly sympathize with the drivers, and I think they have been an important part in my schooling. Hauling my butt to school for one thing, and my friend and I weren’t always quiet in elementary school (sorry, Mrs. Santelli). They have to deal with kids and parents at their worst, and although these issues aren’t nearly as bad in Woodstock as they are in other places, they do exist.
Same goes for campus supervisors — they’re with us throughout our time at the Academy, and the bus drivers are there with us for 8 years assuming the driver/route never changes, which doesn’t happen often in Woodstock. I got a taste of what it was like to be a custodian at the Academy helping move all the cafeteria tables back there from the gym after an event, and even with the help of two other students and good ol’ Al, it took us a couple hours. I can’t imagine being Al and doing it all myself.
Sometimes I think it’s the people who are paid less who truly work the hardest.
Something not mentioned in the article is all the extra time that the drivers have to keep their said licenses. They spend hours and hours behind the wheel with the trainer to take an extremely stressful, difficult driving test with a DMV inspector every few years, and they have to pay to have these tests done and for the licenses. Plus the low wage to begin with, no time left for another job, and time put in to fuel and clean the bus.
I don’t believe that contracting out to a company like Durham or First Student or Rukstela or whatever for busing would interfere with the neighborly busing community. I know that many of the First Student drivers in Pomfret are from Pomfret, the Eastford Rukstela drivers are from or are near Eastford, etc. Just because a big company is hired doesn’t mean they’ll pull in employees from across the state; it would make more sense (and be easier) to hire people who live close by.
Nice letter. Best of luck Becki!
The 273,000 miles is all of the daily bus routes combined. I tried to clarify in the article.
Loadstar, Your complete mis-characterization of what has been said here will not be allowed. John
Are you ever going to take your site off daylight savings time? My post was made at 4:30 in the morning before I go to bed, not 5:30 in the morning.
A Student:
Some of the buses that were in use during the late 90′s and early 2000′s had well over 200,000 miles on them. They were always being repaired by Mr. Buell and kept in good working order despite the high mileage.
And Becki, best wishes as you move on to a new venture. Your dedication and service to the children and the Town/School cannot be measured in dollars.
First – Becki, Thanks for the professionalism that you have shown for dealing with young people in our town! Also good luck with you new venture/activity!
One point that someone should take note of: I did not know it was legal to have someone do work and not get paid for it when they are hourly employees! This is the kind of penny pitching that in the end costs tons more because of failure to follow state and federal labor laws.
John, I didn’t mean to “mis-characterize” anything here, I simply said that all jobs have good sides and unpleasant sides to them. You gave many of the down sides of bus driving and I gave some of the upsides (and it’s too bad you deleted them) and I gave the down sides of my current job and wish my job had the upsides of bus driving.
I’m sure the same can be said for your present job, the money isn’t as good as your former situation in California but I’d be willing to bet that it has its rewarding qualities as well and with your expertise, background and qualifications, I’m sure you’re making positive contributions on many fronts as Becki did with driving a bus. Also as you mentioned, there are down sides to driving a bus and when the bad outweighs the good, it’s best to take a break or look for something else. I’m sorry you took offense to anything I said, I was not my intent to offend you or Becki.