Regional School Unit 21 is looking for seven school bus drivers and will host an open house 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 25 at the transportation hub at 116 York St.(Route 1). Participants can ask questions, hear about the benefits, and if they arrive early, chat with drivers. Dan King photo

KENNEBUNK – Regional School Unit 21 fully opened for all classes in September 2021 after being mostly shuttered since March 2020 due to the pandemic.

Getting students to their classes and back home again, however, has not always been an easy task, because nearly one-fifth of RSU 21’s bus driver positions are vacant.

The school district is short seven bus drivers out of 33 positions and is offering increased incentives to attract drivers. As well as offering full-time benefits for a part-time schedule (25 hours), the district is offering a $2,500 sign-on bonus to new bus driving employees, and a $1,000 referral bonus to district employees who refer a candidate who is hired.

The district is hosting an open house forth those interested in hearing details about the job from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 25 at the RSU 21 transportation hub. The facility is located at 116 York St. (Route 1).

“Last April, the U.S. Secretary of Education visited our district, in part to highlight our resilient transportation
department,” said Superintendent Dr. Terri Cooper, “and so our current need for drivers shows that no district is
ever that far from that need.”

If those exploring the prospect of driving a school bus for the district drop by the open house event between 8 and 9:30 a.m., they may get a chance to talk to a driver – the district is hosting an appreciation breakfast for bus drivers that day, said RSU 21 Communications Specialist David Singer.

A driver with a CDL and two years experience earns $20.60 an hour, said Singer. Someone hired who does not have a CDL would be trained at the district’s expense, earns $17.34 an hour and would work as a bus aide until licensed. Benefits include health and dental insurance, vacations, an opportunity to join the Maine State Retirement system, and more, said Singer.

Until additional drivers are hired and on the road, all licensed personnel are behind the wheel to make sure children get to school and home again.

“School-to-home routes have been prioritized,” said Singer in an email. “RSU 21 uses at least three substitute drivers per day to cover staff vacancies and maintain operations.”

He said Transportation Manager Chris Pasciuto and two mechanics are often on the road driving regular routes and helping with sports runs, field trips and other transportation needs.  Singer said the transportation manager drove a bus route for 3½ weeks while a regular driver was out for surgery.

There have been times, he said, that the district has had to tell families there would be no bus.

“The district has worked hard to avoid this, but given the limited staff, it has happened on occasion,” Singer said. “This mostly impacted out-of-district transportation, but (has) also impacted sports teams and other school related activities that required transportation.”

Singer related there are three out-of-district routes that the district cannot cover due to staffing shortages, but have pieced together solutions that use other school districts and in some cases classes started later for some students.

Bus driver shortages are not unique to RSU 21 and existed prior to the pandemic that emerged in the United States in March 2020. According to a September 2017 Portland Press Herald story, school districts throughout Maine were experiencing driver shortages then. Incentives were beginning to be offered at that time, in a bid to boost the number of drivers.

According to the Maine Department of Education, about 80 percent of the state’s students ride a school bus each day. Nationally, the number is about 50 percent.

At RSU 21, school bus driver Brett Cox just marked his one-year anniversary.

“I took this job because I had enough of manual labor and working in extreme heat and cold,” said Cox in the district news release. “I have a good rapport with kids – I have two kids of my own – and they needed drivers, so I gave it a go and I’m glad I did. You get to contribute to the town and have some fun doing it. And I really like the hours of having some time in between runs to get stuff done, and I’m 10 minutes from my home. Come work for RSU 21 – you won’t regret it. I took a chance and I’m glad I did it. It’s a great work environment.”