Richard Carranza left his house before the sun came up to deliver a pep talk with bus drivers at contractor Logan Bus’ Ozone Park headquarters.
“You’re the first thing our children see today. Make sure you greet them with a nice smile,” said Carranza, chancellor of the New York City Department of Education on Wednesday, the start of the 2018-2019 school year.
According to a release issued by Logan Bus, the company’s drivers were honored to speak with him and admired his down to earth personality.
“The fact that he showed up at 5:30 a.m. to a bus depot yard proves his dedication to the children of this great city,” said Corey Muirhead, director of contacts and business development at Logan Bus. “It shows he understands that school busing is a tremendous component to education.”
After leaving the bus drivers to pick up students for their daily route, Carranza met with Mayor Bill de Blasio at a school nearby to greet children as they embarked on their first day.
Carranza made a total of five stops to the different boroughs across New York, according to the NYC Department of Education Twitter page. Starting in Queens and ending in Staten Island, he participated in class discussions, ate lunch with students in a school cafeteria and greeted families when the dismissal bell rang.
ICYMI: @DOEChancellor Carranza visited schools in the five boroughs for #BackToSchoolNYC! 👇🏽 https://t.co/jeiYmZyIRI
— NYC Public Schools (@NYCSchools) September 5, 2018
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“I hope you had a terrific summer, and that you are as excited about the year ahead as I am,” Carranza said in a newsletter for families. “It is a delight to welcome you to the 2018–2019 school year.”
