The Kansas State Pupil Transportation Association (KSPTA) will hold its first-ever Special Needs Team Safety Competition in June to increase training opportunities for school bus drivers and aides.
Rick Smith, KSTPA vice president of the southcentral region, told School Transportation News that he floated the idea to fellow executive board members to repay a “debt” he owed Frieda Noller, special needs transportation coordinator for Wichita Public Schools and a former colleague.
“I learned a great deal about special needs from her and felt the personal obligation to repay her in some way for the knowledge I gained from her,” said Smith, who is now the director of transportation for Valley Center Public Schools (USD 262).
With the inaugural “roadeo” scheduled for June 11, 2012 during KSPTA’s Summer Symposium in Salina, Smith said the goal is to grow the event from a driver competition to “a full-fledge symposium on special needs transportation.”
“We would like to ensure that our drivers and administrators are current with the latest news and products available to enable them to provide the best services available to the special needs community,” he added.
Smith also said the rest of the KSPTA executive board attended the Transporting Students with Disabilities & Preschoolers 20th National Conference & Exhibition and National Special Needs Team Safety Roadeo held this past March in Kansas City to learn how to organize and hold its own statewide competition.
