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WHEELS: Character on the Bus

WHEELS builds a community of character on the bus based on the school's core values. The workshops are interactive, reflective and conversational. Envisioning buses as "classrooms on wheels," this approach recognizes drivers as the first educators students meet in the morning and the last they see at the end of the school day. They are partners with school personnel and parents in reinforcing the core values of the school community.

WHEELS consists of two types of training:

WHEELS for administrators & bus transportation supervisors: this workshop builds strong bridges between key school administrators and bus leaders. It is offered twice a year (see Calendar) and is free to CHARACTERplus members;$75 for nonmembers. It is required before the following training designed for bus drivers.

WHEELS for bus drivers is a half-day workshop provided on-site for a fee. CHARACTERplus members: at cost; Non-Members: $1,000, plus $5 per participant

Components of the Workshops:
• Identifying core values that unify school and bus communities
• Sharing a common language of character between school and bus
• Fostering autonomy, belonging and competence among students
• Recognizing the essential value of adult role modeling
• Examining ways drivers connect with students, parents and the community
• Exploring how the school community supports and includes drivers
• Bus Buddies
• Bus Captains, Bus Jobs
• Bus Task Force (student-led)
• Codes of conduct
• Strategies to move troublemakers to peacemakers
• Guidance and classroom lessons
• Surveys/Evaluation Measures

WHEELS trainings, launched in August 2007 in Branson, Missouri, have been held in the Lake of the Ozarks; Pacific, Missouri; Belleville, Illinois; and the St. Louis metropolitan area. The program has been introduced by its author, Gina Crump, at the Missouri Association of Pupil Transportation Conferences in 2009 and 2010. Collectively, the trainings have reached more than 400 administrators, transportation supervisors, and drivers from more than 70 districts and 5 bus transportation services companies. Look at the measures they put into place and statistics from two districts.