Ohio-Based Training Program Equips School Bus Drivers to Handle Active Threats

July 30, 2025

Safety First written on desert road — Image provided by HopSkipDrive.

As students across Ohio prepare to return to school this fall, a local company is stepping up efforts to ensure their safety on the way there.

S.T.A.R.T. (School Transportation Active-Threat Response Training), an Ohio-based organization, has launched a Back-to-School Active Threat Awareness Campaign to help protect the more than 800,000 students who ride school buses daily in the Buckeye State.

The program offers specialized training for school bus drivers and transportation personnel to help them identify early warning signs, manage high-risk situations and take swift protective action when necessary. The goal is to close critical safety gaps in student transportation.

S.T.A.R.T., was established in 2015 by a Jim Levine, a former school resource officer who saw a major gap in student safety. The organization is headquartered in Chagrin Falls, Ohio, and operates nationwide. It offers hands-on, scenario-based training developed by a team that includes current and former law enforcement officers, SWAT members, Secret Service agents, crisis response experts and mental health professionals.

The organization is a sponsor of both the Ohio Association for Pupil Transportation (OAPT) and the National Association for Pupil Transportation (NAPT), further underscoring its commitment to student safety on a state and national level.

Law enforcement agencies across Ohio are also being encouraged to take part in the initiative to help foster a coordinated, community-based approach to student safety.

“This training is invaluable. Our drivers, aides, and supervisors truly benefit from the skills and insights they gain,” said Dale L. Dickson, director of the Licking County Educational Service Center via a press release. “I hope to see the day when this training becomes a statewide, or even nationwide, requirement for all school transportation staff.”

Levine, who is also the president and CEO of S.T.A.R.T., emphasized that back-to-school season is only the beginning of the safety and security focus around student transportation.

“We’re encouraging schools to create a year-round mindset of preparedness,” Levine said. “Drivers should be ready to respond to threats at any time, in any location.”