School Officials Look to Hire In-House Bus Drivers, Monitors

FRAMINGHAM - Officials with Framingham Public Schools (FPS) are looking to hire additional school bus drivers and bus monitors as the city moves closer towards using an in-house system for transportation to and from classes.

FPS’ Executive Director of Finance and Operations Lincoln Lynch provided an update to the city’s School Committee on Wednesday, February 5. The meeting came amid continued challenges stemming from a shortage of bus drivers within Framingham; FPS’ contract with the third-party vendor NRT Bus, Inc. calls for 77 drivers to bring students to local schools, but just 53 drivers were available to begin the current school year. School Committee members have advocated for a system where bus operations are brought under the municipal government’s purview, with drivers hired as city employees.

During Wednesday’s meeting, Lynch told committee members that bus driver and bus monitor positions have been posted to various job boards online. Full-time positions for drivers are listed with a pay rate of $35 per hour along with paid training and a $1,000 hiring bonus for certain certifications.

Lynch specifically highlighted the paid training aspect during the meeting, as Framingham school officials will still consider applications from people who do not have a commercial driver’s license (CDL).

“If you don’t have a CDL, it’s OK,” Lynch reiterated on Wednesday.

“You can still apply. There’s a question on the application—it’s a simple yes or no. If you don’t have it, we will help you get it, so please don’t be discouraged just because you don’t have a CDL license.”

Lynch explained that the district’s current plan is to utilize in-house busing by July 1. Buses would be leased through NRT, though the drivers and monitors would be hired as employees of the local school department.

Lynch described the efforts from FPS leaders to get the word out on these positions as a “full court press,” as 14 bus driver applications and seven monitor applications had been completed as of Wednesday’s meeting.

“It’s been a long time coming; we’ve been talking about this for two-plus years, maybe,” Lynch continued.

“This is our first step towards bringing busing in-house starting July 1.”