The U.S. Senate passed a bill last month that would amend language in federal law that strikes the terms "mental retardation" and "mentally retarded" in favor of "intellectual disabilities," the phrase of choice used by the Centers for Disease Control and the White House.

The flood waters have long subsided, but school districts in New Orleans and elsewhere along the Gulf Coast still face tremendous challenges related to their educational and support services budgets, student ridership eligibility and age and quality of their school bus fleets.

Three years ago, the Texas legislature passed only the second school bus lap/shoulder belt bill in the nation's history. But today, with only days remaining before the law is set to go into effect, school districts have yet to see the state funds to purchase new school buses equipped with the safety systems.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration released best practices on safer routing and stop selection, including the recommendation that districts minimize the need for students to cross any road to or from their school bus.