Students nationwide are scanning their way on and off school buses at an increasing pace, as school districts realize student identification cards improve transparency for parents on the whereabouts of their children.
But ID cards once used solely for transportation, or more accurately in a silo apart from other school district and community uses, are going the way of the Dodo.
Miles Cole, chief strategy officer for RFID card provider CI Solutions, noted universal ID cards and developing community partners is a “big-league move for metro districts,” which “turns the student ID into a mobility plus access credential, not just a school badge.
“When a student ID works for school and for city services, you remove friction from the two biggest ‘non-classroom’ barriers to learning—getting places and accessing resources,” he continued.
In Columbus, Ohio, high school students can use the district-issued Student Success Card to ride the Central Ohio Transit Authority (COTA) through its Educational Pass Program and also access Columbus Metropolitan Library.
Machelle Kline, the chief student services officer for Columbus City Schools department of student services, noted the district issues each ninth through 12th grade student a free COTA pass each school year, good 24/7 without weekend restrictions. The district pays COTA $13.50 per student per semester.
“Our Student Success Card also allows them to check out books at the Columbus Metropolitan Library and is in pilot mode to scan on our school buses,” Kline said. “The card also allows our youngest learners and those with disabilities to scan onto a computer. It acts as a student ID.”
Kline said the district is conducting an indepth analysis with COTA to see if it can eliminate ninth through 12th grade transportation as it is not required in Ohio.
In the Salt Lake City School District, district employees, students, and a parent or guardian from each student household can receive a free Utah Transit Authority (UTA) pass for unlimited access to buses, TRAX, UTA On Demand and S-Line.
Such passes are a “direct lever on attendance and student engagement,” Cole said. “Transportation access is one of the most practical, immediate levers districts can pull to improve attendance, tutoring participation, internships, after-school programs, and family engagement.”
Cole noted a universal ID improves equity “without making parents jump through hoops. A universal ID that works for lunch, library, login, transit can be a major equity upgrade because it reduces requirements like separate transit applications, separate library card sign-ups, multiple credentials/password resets, and reliance on a parent’s phone, credit card, and time to set things up.”
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Ken Martinez, Salt Lake City’s transportation director, explained the school district implemented Zum technologies and student ID cards into the school bus fleet. “We are in the process of getting this one card to be used for tapping on and off the school bus,” he shared. “[The] same function on UTA utilizing their bus, TRAX [electric train] and on-demand services. The same card will be used for accessing the school library and student lunches.”
He added that this streamlined approach will help students keep track of their student ID card.
“When it is just their bus pass, they did not seem to care if they got damaged or lost and did not mind waiting to order a replacement,” he continued. “When the same card determines all the activities, including the ones they truly want to use, their level of concern will highly increase.”
Martinez said the goal is to fully implement the ID cards for the upcoming 2026-2027 school year.
