WESTBROOK, Maine — Like many districts, finding an ample number of school bus drivers is a struggle.
The issue is the same for the Westbrook School Department as it continues to discuss creative solutions to make up for a lack of staff.
Denise Watts has been working alongside the transportation department for the past 20 years and often helps as an administrative assistant, until now.
Recently, she's been getting behind the wheel to cover empty bus routes.
"Day to day, it's just, be ready to go on the fly," Watts said. "It's not our first choice, but we're doing as much as we can to get the children to school."
She says pre-COVID pandemic, many folks took jobs as school bus drivers as a post-retirement job. But in today's day and age, that perspective has shifted.
Melissa Foye, director of transportation, said the situation has "progressively gotten worse," as the department is down about a third of the bus drivers the district usually has.
On top of Watt's help, the bus routes have shifted to make sure kids get to school, and the district is being more lenient to late arrivals.
This past summer, current bus drivers even went through a certification to train new staff for their Commercial Driver's License, a requirement for the job. The goal is to lessen the stress for applicants who may not already have the qualifications.
One of those certified to train is Watts, who helped two new applicants train this past summer.
"It's hard. It's a job you really have to try," Watts added. "So for me, it's been a great bonus to see these kids."
School leaders hope to continue to increase pay for the position as negotiations for the school's contract starts in the near future.
