School start dates in South Carolina

SOCIAL MEDIA AS WELL. SOME SCHOOL DISTRICTS ACROSS THE UPSTATE SAY THEY HAVE ENOUGH BUS DRIVERS FOR THE UPCOMING SCHOOL YEAR, THANKS TO NEW INCENTIVES, WHILE OTHERS SAY THEY’RE STILL LOOKING TO FILL A FEW OPEN VACANCIES. OUR NATE STANLEY JOINS US LIVE IN GREENVILLE WITH WHAT DISTRICTS ARE DOING TO BRING IN NEW DRIVERS. NATE. WELL, AN INCREASE IN PAY HAS BEEN THE BIGGEST FACTOR BEING CREDITED BY MOST OF THESE DISTRICTS THAT SAY THEY’RE FULLY STAFFED OF ABOUT CLOSE TO A DOZEN DISTRICTS THAT RESPONDED TO US TODAY AROUND HALF SAY THEY’RE STILL LOOKING TO FILL THOSE VACANCIES. THEY ARE A A CONSTANT IN THE LIVES OF SO MANY YOUNG PEOPLE THAT FACE THAT THEY SEE WHEN THEY GET ON THE BUS IN THE MORNING, AND THEN WHEN THEY EXIT IN THE AFTERNOON TO GO HOME ABOUT HALFWAY THROUGH THE SUMMER, THINGS LOOK A LITTLE BETTER FOR THE GREENVILLE COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT, ACCORDING TO DISTRICT SPOKESPERSON TIM WALLER, THE DISTRICT HAS AROUND 60 BUS DRIVER OPENINGS AND IMPROVEMENT FROM OVER 100. JUST A FEW YEARS AGO. IT SOUNDS LIKE A BIG NUMBER, AND IT’S A IT’S A GAP THAT WE WOULD LIKE TO CLOSE, BUT IT’S NOT A HUGE AMOUNT. PEOPLE ARE ALWAYS COMING AND GOING FOR VARIOUS REASONS, HE SAYS. THAT’S LARGELY THANKS TO PAY INCREASES THEY’RE OFFERING DRIVERS, INCLUDING BONUSES FOR STAYING WITH THE DISTRICT OVER THE YEARS, WE’VE RAISED OUR PAY RATE. GONE ARE THE DAYS WHEN BUS DRIVERS MAKE VERY LITTLE MONEY. SCHOOL DISTRICTS, INCLUDING OURS, HAVE RAISED THEIR PAY RATE UP TO MAKE THAT ATTRACTIVE. OVER IN UNION COUNTY. THE DISTRICT TELLS ME THEY ONLY HAVE TWO VACANCIES FOR CLOSE TO 30 TOTAL BUSSES. TRANSPORTATION DIRECTOR SAMMIE TUCKER SAYS THE EFFECT OF NOT HAVING A FULL STAFF HAS A DOMINO EFFECT ON STUDENTS AND THEIR FAMILIES. TUCKER SAYS THE UNION COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT IS ALSO OFFERING BONUSES. WE OFFER A BONUS FOR THE DRIVERS THEY IF THEY DON’T MISS SO MANY DAYS, THEY GET A BONUS. WE ARE TESTING FOR CDL DRIVER LICENSE. THIS TREND IS SIMILAR FOR MANY DISTRICTS. WE SPOKE TO LAURENS DISTRICT 56, IN GREENWOOD DISTRICT 52 SAY THEY FILLED ALL THEIR BUS DRIVER POSITIONS TO IN PICKENS COUNTY. THE DISTRICT HAS 11 OPENINGS FOR ALMOST 120 BUS DRIVER POSITIONS. SOMETIMES DISCIPLINE CAN BE A PROBLEM. THEN THE PARENTS CALL. THEY WONDER WHERE THE THE STUDENTS, THE CHILD THAT ON THE BUS BECAUSE THEY NOT GETTING HOME AT THE TIME. THEY USUALLY GET HOME. SO THAT COULD BE AN ISSUE. THERE. AND IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN FILLING OUT AN APPLICATION FOR A BUS DRIVER POSITION HERE IN GREENVILLE OR OUT IN UNION, YOU’RE ENCOURAGED TO VISIT THE DISTRICT’S WEBSITES.