With School Bus Safety Week less than a month away, Northern Lights Public Schools is pleased to announce the launch of rideSAFE, its new student school bus safety program.
"Having our own program will provide us with more flexibility in providing school bus safety sessions to students and help us increase the number of students who can participate each year," explained Matt Richter, Director of Transportation. Prior to this year, NLPS contracted out this service.
rideSAFE will teach students about general school bus safety, rider responsibilities and bus rules, and how to evacuate a bus safely. The program uses a combination of classroom discussion and practical exercises on a school bus. While it is focused on students in Kindergarten to Grade 6, lessons can be tailored to older students as well.
"In addition to covering material that is universal for all students who take the bus, we will also be able to focus in on issues that are more local in nature - issues we observe with students on our buses and in our area," said Richter.
The program will be instructed by Marlena Bowering, the division's new senior driving instructor. In addition to rideSAFE, Bowering also introduced students to riding the bus in August during Meet the Bus sessions at the division's elementary schools. She will also be teaching Mandatory Entry Level Training (MELT) and S Endorsement courses for bus drivers at the new NLPS Driving School.
The first rideSAFE sessions will take place later this month to coincide with School Bus Safety Week.
School Bus Safety Week
School Bus Safety Week will take place October 20-26, 2019. This year's theme is "Ready to Ride."
The Alberta Student Transportation Advisory Council (ASTAC) is sponsoring a provincial poster contest for students in Kindergarten to Grade 6. Students are encouraged to create an 11"X17" poster with the theme "Ready to Ride."