Bea Cortez, a transportation employee at the Bay City (Texas) Independent School District, won a scholarship to attend this year’s STN EXPO in early May during the fourth annual Transfinder Client Conference in Austin, Texas.
A secretary and dispatcher for less than a year, Cortez won the scholarship sponsored by both Transfinder and STN Media Group, the parent company of School Transportation News magazine and owner of the STN EXPO. Transfinder’s sponsorship covers Cortez’s airfare and hotel stay while STN Media Group covers her registration to the 20th annual show in Reno, Nev.
This year’s EXPO takes place July 20-24 at the Grand Sierra Resort. Detailed information can be found at www.stnexpo.com.
Cortez previously had been a school bus driver for the district for 18 years – she had the same route, in fact, for about 13 of those years. In learning the ins and outs of routing and dispatching, Cortez said her boss thought it would be a good idea for her to attend the Transfinder conference in April, which covered in detail the company’s product offerings, from routing and fleet maintenance software to GPS and field trip management.
This will be her first time attending the STN EXPO. Cortez said she didn’t even know about the show until she won the scholarship, and is excited to attend.
“I didn’t grasp everything that was involved (in the transportation department) until now, so going to the show will be a learning experience for me,” she said. “I’m excited to go and see what it’s all about.”
Editor’s Note: The photo shows Bea Cortez flanked by STN Media Group Tony Corpin, left, and Transfinder Founder and CEO Tony Civitella.
