Canadian school districts will have until April 5 to submit their entries to IC Bus' "Canada's Greenest School" contest. Like the American version, the winner will receive a CE Series Hybrid Electric school bus and a school audit by LEED Accredited Professional.

Our friends to the north can enter here, or if your in the U.S., enter for this year's contest here.

Although the numbers are not a final assessment of the number of vehicle-related fatalities in the U.S., the numbers are showing a decline over the 2008 data. Deaths are down 8.9 percent to 33,963 in 2009 from from 37,261 in the previous year. The fatality rate per 100 million vehicles miles of travel also fell to 1.16 from 1.25.

What hasn’t changed, according to the data, is the time period during which the highest number of deaths occurred. In the third quarter, from July to September, there were 9,155 deaths, which is still 7.5 percent lower than 2008. But is was still the highest quarter by almost 200 fatalities.

Comparatively, the 2007-2008 school year saw six student fatalities in crashes involving school buses during normal morning and afternoon commute times. That's compared to 368 student fatalities during the same time periods occurring in other passenger vehicles, according to data extrapolated by consultant Doug Snyder for the California Association of School Transportation Officials from overall NHTSA FARS data for all vehicles at all times of day.

Last month, the Kansas State Department of Education released its annual National School Bus Loading and Unloading Survey found that 11 states reported a total of 17 deaths during the 2008-2009 school year.

House Bill 5033 would require three-point lap/shoulder belts on all school buses manufactured in 2012 and beyond. If passed, the state Department of Motor Vehicles could suspend the registration of any school bus that was not equipped with the proper restraints. In the last 20 years, almost two dozen similar bills have never made it out of committee, giving HB 5033 some hope.

The bill was introduced by Rep. Antonio Guerrera after a 16-year-old boy, Vikas Parikh, died on his way to a weekend science competition after the school bus overturned. Parikh's parents and sister testified before lawmakers last month, stressing that seat belts would have saved Parikh's life.

Currently, only six states have passed laws requiring seat belts on school buses, and only two of the laws are related to the lap/shoulder restraints.

The trade show during the National Conference on Transporting Students with Disabilities and Preschoolers was barely two hours old, and Betsy Shulthess was already counting down the days until she will return next year.

From left, Chris Thomas of American Logistics Company and Betty Shulthess of St. Charles, Ill., who won a conference scholarship provided by the contracted services provider.

Shulthess, the transportation safety coordinator at St. Charles Community Unit School District 303 in the suburbs of Chicago, said she found extremely valuable workshops on how school districts can partner with businesses on providing transportation services; employ conflict resolution techniques for students, parents and employees alike; and improve working relationships with district administrators. She also said she obtained ideas on how to bring innovation to her school district and to encourage new thought processes to remain on the cutting edge as well as how to better multitask and to re-evaluate district job descriptions.

This, she said, entails "refocusing constantly on where we need to go and what we need to do."

Shulthess learned about the American Logistics scholarship at the 2009 show in Indianapolis, when Chris Thomas, the company's business development manager presented attendees with information on the scholarship and introduced that year's winner, Robin Parks, transportation specialist at Tompkins-Seneca-Tioga BOCES in Ithaca, N.Y. Shulthess' regular work schedule and district budget only allowed her to attend the conference over the weekend, and Thomas' talk to the attendees presented to her an opportunity for 2010.

"I turned to my friend and said, 'You know what? Next year I'm going to be [in Orlando],'" she said. "I realized we had a lot of work to do [at St. Charles], and I was really disappointed I couldn't stay for the whole conference.

When she returned to Illinois, she filled out her application. The rest is history. American Logistic's Thomas contacted Shulthess to inform her she won full conference registration this year as well as round-trip airfare, her hotel stay, transportation to and from the airport, meals, and spending cash. She will also return to the conference in 2011 under the second part of her scholarship, next time as a guest of EduproGroup. Next year's show is scheduled for March 11 through 16 in Kansas City.

Shulthess coordinates the safety and security of the district’s 14,650 school bus riders and 140 bus drivers and assistants. She is responsible for monitoring special education safety requirements for each of the special education buses and supervises the bus evacuation drills for the all of the 17 schools in the district. The disabilities conference, she said, provides the training she needs, not only for herself but to bring back to St. Charles.

"We needed to get our ducks in a row; our district is looking for leaders," she added.

Recalls were announced concerning a noncompliance issue with 2007 model-year U.S. Bus models STHF5, STH5, and Universe school buses manufactured between November 1, 2006, and April 1, 2007. The buses are equipped with Freedman Seating Company 33 1/2-inch school bus barriers.

According to the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI): "In the event of a crash, a passenger's knee may come in contact with the rear surface of the non-compliant restraining barriers, which could result in personal injury to the occupant."

The second recall, which covers the same noncompliance issue, covers certain Trans Tech Rondak 4F+9, Q86-5, and STH5 school buses manufactured between February 1, 2008, and June 1, 2009.

TCI said it will notify owners beginning on or about March 31, 2010, and will repair the buses free of charge.

Editor's note: Read an article from last fall on the dispute between TCI and NHTSA to repair defective U.S. Bus models.