Jefferson County Public Schools (JCPS) effort to recruit more school bus drivers received a big boost with the help of multiple state agencies. The Kentucky State Police (KSP), Transportation Cabinet, Governor’s Office, and state Sen. Jimmy Higdon collaborated with JCPS and Greater Louisville Inc. (GLI) to add a written test in Spanish for drivers seeking their Commercial Drivers License (CDL). JCPS chief operations officer Rob Fulk is hopeful the move will pave the way for more Spanish speaking adults to become school bus drivers.
“This could have a significant impact on our ability to solve our bus driver shortage,” Fulk said. “We’ve had many Spanish-speaking applicants who never made it behind the steering wheel of a bus because they couldn’t understand and pass the difficult, state-required written test. This should open the door for more Spanish-speakers to, potentially, get their CDL and drive for JCPS or any other Kentucky school district.”
The written test is the first of two KSP administered tests that applicants must pass to get a CDL to drive large vehicles, like a semi tractor-trailer truck or bus. The second test - a driving test - will still be given only in English. Fulk said it’s a difficult process, as it should be, for any adult to complete. But he said anything to remove barriers for safety-conscious adults to drive a bus is a good thing.
“We’ve had approximately 100 Spanish-speaking men and women want to become bus drivers in the past year,” Fulk said. “But they either failed the written test, didn’t complete the CDL permit course, or didn’t follow through on their application because of the language barrier. That doesn’t help either those who want to work or JCPS, which needs more bus drivers. We’re now turning that around thanks to the help and cooperation of folks in Frankfort.”
GLI joined JCPS officials in lobbying for the addition of a Spanish version of the CDL test.
“Public education is critical to shaping a strong future workforce, and reliable transportation directly impacts student attendance and success," said Sarah Davasher-Wisdom, president and CEO of Greater Louisville Inc. "GLI was proud to work with JCPS and our local, state, and federal partners to expand the pipeline for bus drivers by translating the CDL test into Spanish."
People interested in becoming a JCPS bus driver can find more information, including applications, here.