Donning a Leadership Cap

November 26, 2024

School Transportation News staff weigh many factors when looking for the next Transportation Director of the Year. Accomplishments in the industry, especially over the past couple of years, weigh heavily. So, too, do their leadership skills. There are
plenty of options to choose from each year, which is a good thing. It can also make the selection a daunting one. Thankfully, we have many examples to use as a litmus test for what makes a strong and successful director of transportation.

Look no further than George Edward (Ed) Donn. You may have read at stnonline.com/go/kp that Ed died last month at the age of 85. He was one of the most decorated student transporters in the industry’s history. He was also as nice as he was knowledgeable about his trade. The dictionary should have Ed’s photo next to the word “gentleman.”

I was saddened when, during an introduction of the NAPT Foundation board members at last month’s Annual Conference and Trade Show in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, it was mentioned that Ed was unable to attend. I wondered about his health. I knew he was heartbroken following the death of wife Sandi in 2001. I spoke to him several times since then, most recently this past spring. He was still the same old Ed, kind, complimentary, insightful, and asking about my family. But something was different.

My heart was lightened upon learning that he died peacefully at a hospital in Marietta, Georgia, located about an hour southwest of his home in Calhoun. He relocated there in the early 1990s after retiring from Washington County Public Schools in Maryland, where he served as director of transportation for 16 years. Before that, he was the assistant director at Prince George’s County Public Schools also in Maryland.

He not only left an impression on tens of thousands of student riders over his career but as many student transportation professionals. It was Ed who co-founded the NAPT Foundation and the NAPT Professional Development Series. He was immortalized in the NAPT Hall of Fame for his efforts and received the NAPT Distinguished Service Award. He was an entrepreneur, co-founding video surveillance company Bus Vision and then 24/7 Security.

But knowing Ed, his accomplishments were never about himself but others, especially the students who ride school buses every day and the many professionals who make the service work. Always giving of his time, both humbly and generously, he was as genuine as they come. The consummate family man. Mind as sharp as a tack. In his hey-day, he was quite the track athlete as well.

After he passed on Oct. 10, I reflected on the parallels between his life and STN’s director of the year honor, which we recognize this month. Innovative. Leader. Transparent. Giving. Check, check, check, check. The recognition could very well be renamed the Ed Donn Transportation Director of the Year Award.

Craig Beaver, this year’s winner (read the article by Taylor Ekbatani, starting on page 28) has literally come a long way since he got his start in student transportation. To be exact 1,111 miles.

A lifelong resident of the San Diego, California area, Beaver retired as director of transportation from Grossmont Union High School District in January 2015 and relocated to Oregon, where he joined Beaverton School District. It was destiny, as Beaver says, to reinvent himself in the Pacific Northwest at one of Oregon’s largest school districts, his namesake, so to speak.

With that move, he has ushered in the state’s largest fleet of electric school buses and with them data to illustrate performance and cost savings. He readily shares that information and the many lessons he learned about implementation and deployment to anyone who asks. He’s willing to try new things and is not afraid of failure. He empowers his staff to see if they can make new ideas work, which sometimes means recalibrating. For his efforts, he also accepted the Leading Public Fleet Award for Beaverton School District at the Advanced Clean Transportation Expo in Las Vegas, Nevada, in May.

Beaver and all those who came before him, and will come after, have large shoes to fill left by Ed Donn. But surely, he is looking down from heaven with pride. Ed was ready and willing to support and celebrate all endeavors and people that put school buses in a positive light and that lead to successful outcomes for the children who ride them.

Editor’s Note: As reprinted in the November 2024 issue of School Transportation News.