David Poag has over 15 years of transportation experience in both pupil transportation and mass transportation. He started as a bus driver for Clemson Area Transit while he was attending college at Clemson University in 2008. He was a multiple time ROADEO driving champion which sparked his interest in the field.
In 2011, he transitioned into the pupil transportation space, serving as the operations and routing coordinator for Anderson School District Five in South Carolina. He served in that role for the next two years before moving to Greenville County Schools to serve as the routing and scheduling coordinator. Greenville is reportedly the largest district in South Carolina with nearly 400 bus routes. During this time, he became a certified director of transportation.
Poag moved back to Anderson in 2021 to become the assistant director of transportation. However, in May 2024 he became the director of transportation for Spartanburg School District 6. Poag and his wife Jennifer, reside in Anderson with their three children ages 5, 7, and 9.
Each year, School Transportation News chooses 10 Rising Stars based on nominations submitted by school districts and companies around the industry. These individuals have shown exemplary commitment and dedication in the student transportation industry and continue to demonstrate innovation in their roles. This year’s Rising Stars are featured in the November magazine issue.
“No two days in transportation are ever alike,” he said of his day-to-day operations. “The hustle and bustle of daily school bus operations is an environment I love. Every day we are challenged with new opportunities and face situations where we are tested in a multitude of ways.”
He noted that being a part of the transportation department that delivers the nation’s precious cargo daily is his favorite part of his job.
“I learn so much from our staff and it’s such a joy to work with folks from many different backgrounds,” he said, adding that Spartanburg drivers consist of career bus drivers/monitors, airline pilots, air traffic controllers, graphic designers, artists, developers, pastors, first responders, coaches, teachers, retired military, moms, dads, grandparents and more. “Those who drive or serve on a school bus bring with them a unique blend of life experiences and I thoroughly enjoy hearing and learning from them.”
Data Driven
Teena Mitchell, the special needs coordinator at Greenville County Schools, said she had the pleasure of meeting Poag when he became the routing coordinator at Greenville. She said in her nomination of Poag, that while there he initiated several programs and improved some processes.
“He is an expert on using data to improve processes, from providing data to change bell times, to using data to refresh our driver training program,” she wrote. “He was instrumental in updating our technology in transportation; from expanding our digital footprint to live feed in buses to software and radios.”
Poag added that the bell time change resulted in significant improvements with on-time performance for students at the middle and high school level. Mitchell added that he’s very creative in his training ideas, from using video to train drivers and aides to getting the Clemson Tiger Mascot to work with the district on the school bus demonstrating for elementary students how to safely load, unload and safely ride a bus.
While at Anderson district, Poag said he championed a project that increased the district’s licensing rate of driver candidates to 111 percent. “The same project reduced the amount of time it took to license a candidate by 53 percent,” he said. “These results were a direct impact of the decision to streamline our licensing process and hire candidates as full-time employees during their training.”
Mitchell added that the creative hiring campaign at Anderson consisted of using QR codes, billboards, and even wrapped a car to resemble a school bus. “The hiring data showed his ideas were effective,” she said.
She added that Poag is also a National Association of Pupil Transportation instructor for Professional Development Series (PDS) classes as well as a presenter for professional development at conferences. He currently serves on the PDS Committee with NAPT.
Going Forward
One goal for Spartanburg’s transportation department is to implement new school bus routes to ensure the on-time delivery of their 4,000 students. Additionally, the district will be putting nine new buses on the road this school year, with a district-wide service area for Child Development Centers.
An additional goal is opening a new parking depot, which will house 30 to 40 buses. “In the next five years, I see Spartanburg sustaining a full slate of dedicated transportation professionals and providing exceptional service in order to make a difference [to] one student at a time,” Poag added.
Outside of work, Poag enjoys riding the golf cart with his family and going to country singer Dolly Parton’s Dollywood in Pigeon Ford, Tennessee.
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