The force of the school fleet
As employees worked on summer bus inspections in the Dews Pond warehouse, Keith Brown explained that his team of four mechanics has rebuilt over 12 engines in the past two and a half years, some even for buses that were made in the 1990s.
Brown, who serves as director of transportation, came to work for Gordon County Schools nearly three years ago. And he said since he’s been here, his department has grown not only in size, but also improved safety measures and efficiency.
The department has developed so that when a bus needs repair or to be remodeled, Brown’s team transforms it to look like it’s brand new, even when it might still be a bus from the early 2000s. And while daily routes wear down buses quickly, Brown said Gordon County is actually a good place to be a bus driver.
“Here in the South and in Gordon County, we don’t have a lot of rough roads to travel,” he said. “There are some in Fairmount, but for the most part, we are quite fortunate in that regard so our buses last longer.”
Since he joined the school system, Brown has been working on decreasing the number of bus-related accidents, whether those are collisions, mirror slaps or even just knocking a mailbox over. Brown, an Air Force veteran who has worked for schools’ transportation departments across the country, has a standard of being as close to perfection as possible. And bit by bit, he’s moving the department in that direction.
For having a fleet of 78 school buses, Gordon County Schools is operating as efficiently as possible, according to Brown, serving the school system and its 6,600 students.
BUS,
“For a county geographically our size, we’re operating as few (buses) from a routing standpoint as best we possibly can,” Brown said. “We try to balance it as best as we can.”
This year was the district’s safest year for the department in the span of the past
10 years, Brown said, with drivers taking over 48,000 consecutively safe trips since early December. And according to Brown, greater things are in store for the district.
In October, the department purchased four new propane school buses, and Brown said they plan to slowly replace diesel buses with propane vehicles.
Not only are propane buses cheaper, but they also last longer, they require less
maintenance and reduce air pollution.
The transportation department also has a newly-developed camera system that places seven cameras on each bus, to film both internally and externally during routes. While all of the buses in the district have yet to get the system, Brown is working on getting the funding to equip the entire fleet with the new cameras.
“The more small things
we pay attention to, the less big things we’ve got to worry about,” Brown said. “It’s more about preventative maintenance than repair maintenance. That’s truly what it’s all about.”
Brown is pleased with his current drivers and the progress the department has made in recent years, yet, he will be hiring on a minimum of six new bus drivers for the 2019-2020 academic year. And he is looking to
start the hiring process as soon as possible.
While new drivers have to go through a bit of training, participate in safety classes and practice operating the buses, Brown said it’s a good position for anyone looking for part-time work.
Through all the work Brown’s done and continues to do for the district, the main goal he constantly emphasizes is safely serving the children, parents and
citizens of Gordon County.
“My whole purpose here is to serve the community,” Brown said. “Routes are not created for the driver but to serve the community. Buses are not bought for our employees, but to serve the community.”
For more information on the hiring, contact Brown at keithbrown@gcbe.org or view the online application at gcbe.tedk12.com/hire/ index.aspx.