EL CAJON (KGTV) — School bus drivers do more than just get students to and from school safely — they're often the first line of defense in a crisis.
Ahead of its first day of school this Thursday, the Cajon Valley Union School District hired a team of experts from Cleveland, Ohio, to train its school bus drivers on how to respond during a crisis event.
The program is called, The School Transportation Active-Threat Response Training (S.T.A.R.T.) program. Per its website, S.T.A.R.T.'s team is composed of experts from active-duty and former police officers, social workers, mental health experts, United States military, and United States Secret Service personnel who deliver relevant and current, best-practice material in classroom and scenario-based exercise settings.
It was developed by CEO Jim Levine, a former school resource officer and current police officer in Cleveland, Ohio, and his program covers response training for scenarios ranging from bullying to active shooting.
The Cajon Valley School District is leading the state as the first district in California to use the S.T.A.R.T. training program to advance their school bus drivers' skill sets.
Levine's program was started in 2015. It teaches bus drivers situational awareness and specific techniques to use during emergencies. The techniques are constantly evolving with the new
For example, the bus drivers learned on Monday how to disarm potential shooters on a school bus, with swerving maneuvers designed to throw an attacker off balance.
"As a former school resource officer, I love all the resources that are being devoted to the schools: school resource officers, cameras, fencing, film on the windows, and locks on the doors. We fortify the right flank, but we leave the left flank completely unprotected, and that's the school bus," Levine said.
Levine's training also taught the school bus drivers to identify warning signs that could prevent violence.
"We have learned that bullying is the precursor to active shooter situations. A bus driver can be their advocate," Levine said.
For many drivers, these scenarios represent new territory in their careers.
"In my 27 years, no I've never dealt with a crisis, so that's good, but you never know," Maria Savedra, a Cajon Valley school bus driver said.
Howard Kendall, who has been driving school buses for 8 years after retiring from law enforcement, emphasized the extensive responsibilities drivers already shoulder. Kendall said the training reminded him much of his de-escalation training with his former police department.
"We do so many other things, we have extensive first aid training, maintaining control in the bus, maintaining the welfare of the children in the bus," Kendall said. "I never had an idea of really what it all entailed until I actually became a school bus driver."
The Cajon Valley Union School District said it employs 35 drivers and 16 bus attendants who transport more than 700 students daily. They daily transport students on 21 different routes.
School officials took on the training program as it recognizes that student safety doesn't begin upon entering a school building.
"That starts from the moment they step onto the bus in the morning, is just as important, if not more so, because they are the bus drivers are the only adults on the bus," Levine said.
To sign up for the S.T.A.R.T. training program, click here: https://www.schoolbusstart.com/
