For the past five years, School Transportation News has requested nominations of student transporters who are displaying leadership or innovation in their school bus operation, but who may have not received the public or industry-wide recognition that they deserve.
This year, the magazine received 65 nominations, which are listed below. Out of these, 10 individuals were selected by the editors for profiles in our October magazine ‘Rising SuperStars’ feature.
Karen Ballard-Sohayda
Director, Transportation Services, Oceanside Unified School Districts, Calif.
Filiberto Bonilla, 55
Director of Transportation, Hays CISD, Texas
David Bowman, 27
Transportation Director, Lakeland School Corporation, Ind.
Tyler Bryan, 34
Education Associate, School Transportation, State of Delaware, Department of Education, Del.
Chris Burris
Driver-Trainer, Wythe County Schools, Va
Rosella Cadena, 60
Bus Driver, West County Transportation Agency, Calif.
Christina Celeste
Transportation Supervisor, Orange Unified School District, Calif.
Leonard Clarke, 71
Transportation & Security Coordinator, Phyl’s Academy, Fla.
T.J. Crockett, 40
Director of Transportation, Salem Keizer Public Schools, Ore.
Scot Dahl, 56
Transportation Director/Driver, Guymon Public Schools, Okla.
Marianela Del Rosario, 45
Custodian, Transportation, Fla.
Doug Dey, 47
Transportation Director, Bunker Hill CUSD #8, Ill.
Chrissy Dixson, 39
Transportation Secretary, Tillamook School District #9, Ore.
Glen Enstice, 45
Assistant Director of Transportation, Brevard County Schools, Fla.
Betsy Fox, 40
Transportation Director, Ontario Bus Inc, N.Y.
Daniel Frye, 37
President/CEO, Frye Transportation Group, Inc., Pa.
Lena Galloway, 29
Transportation Coordinator, Montezuma-Cortez School District, Colo.
Brooke Garcia
CEO, 4Seasons Transportation, CAB
Patricia Helem, 62
School Bus Driver, Philadelphia School District, Pa.
Mike Helms, 55
Vehicle Mechanic, Crittenden County, Ky.
Heidi Helton, 39
Routing Supervisor, Aldine ISD, Texas
Patrick Johnson, 45
Safety Director, Lakeview, Ill.
Karim Jonson, 40
Owner/General Manager, Integrity Student Transportation, S.C.
Debbie Kinemond, 58
Assistant Director of Transportation, Cherry Creek Schools, Colo.
Sandy Konn, 64
Operations Manager, Sunrise Transportation, Ill.
Seth Krampota
Lead Mechanic, Santa Fe ISD, Texas
Tom Lamansky, 39
Transportation Director, Cardinal CSD, Iowa
Jeff Leedy
Driver-Trainer, Wythe County Schools, Va.
Brian Lyons, 50
Nationals Sales Manager/Founder, Fire-Gator, S.C.
Justin Macht, 37
District Manager, First Student, Kan.
Zack McKinney, 38
Director of Transportation, Hamilton Southeastern Schools, Ind.
Cynthia Mendez-Tindal, 49
Supervisor of Operations in Transportation, Osceola Schools District, Fla.
Daniel Middleton, 62
Fleet Operations & Inspections Coordinator, Duval County Public Schools, Fla.
Michael Miller
Director, Brevard Public Schools, Fla.
Randy Mitchell
Driver-Trainer, Wythe County Schools, Va.
Jason Nelson, 35
Transportation Supervisor, Kyrene School District, Ariz.
Virginia Perez, 50
Interim Transportation Director, Decatur ISD, Texas
Clayton Peters, 27
Technician, Dynamic specialty Vehicles, British Columbia
Ricky Phillips
Vehicle Maintenance Manager, Clarksville Montgomery County School System, Tenn.
Maritza Pineda, 40
School Bus Driver, Catholic Charities Head Start, Md.
Kevin Queen
Transportation Director, York School District One, S.C.
Justo Ramirez, 57
Safety Supervisor, Austin ISD, Texas
Jerry Rank, 64
Transportation Supervisor, San Lorenzo Unified School District, Calif.
Tessie Reeder, 55
Transportation supervisor/Director, Calaveras USD, Calif.
Barbara Rendon
Asst. Director, New Caney ISD, Texas
Megan Roeder, 19
Sub Bus Driver, Apple Valley USD, Calif.
Rene Sanchez, 49
Chief Operations Officer, South Bend Community School Corporation, Ind.
Nick Scott
Fleet Manager, Salem Keizer Public Schools, Ore.
Stacy Segneri
Transportation Manager, Harlow’s School Bus Inc., N.D.
Ricardo Silva, 47
Dispatch, Storer Transportation, Calif.
Tommy Sims, 40
Director of Transportation, LESD #79, Ariz.
Tonya Smith, 51
Training Academy Supervisor, Aldine ISD, Texas
Mary Spagnola, 62
Transportation Supervisor, Barker Busing, Pa.
Alex Spann, 31
Transportation Consultant, Tenn.
Patty Spencer, 60
Transportation Trainer, Grandview C4 School District, Mo.
Diana Stafford
Driver, Wythe County Schools, Va.
Tirza Tarango, 49
Transportation Support Specialist, Eagle County Schools, Colo.
Roxann Thorner, 60
Driver-Trainer, Star and Strand Transportation, N.Y.
Scott Turner, 37
Executive Director, East San Gabriel Valley SELPA, Calif.
Nicholas Vallone, 30
Vice President, VP Buses, LLC dba SuperTrans, N.Y.
Susan Ward
Driver-Trainer, Wythe County Schools, Va.
Jonathon Watson, 49
Supervisor of Transportation, Lafayette Parish School System, La.
Dora Williamson, 50
School Bus Driver, Weaver Transportation, Calif.
Shannon Wilson, 40
Director, Sussex County Regional Cooperative, N.J.
Dennis Woldstad
Former Bus Driver, Olney/Bissell School District, Mont.
