News & Events

From School Transportation News / By Claudia Newton / July 13, 2026

RENO, Nev. – Transportation leaders from six school districts across the U.S. shared their team-building secrets in an STN EXPO West panel on Monday.

CEO Antonio Civitella explained how Transfinder administered the fourth annual Top Transportation Teams award program by surveying participating districts’ employees and praised the “exceptional” winners amidst progressively toughening competition.

“These are people who put their people before their processes,” he declared, while moderating the discussion.

A school district does not have to be using Transfinder technology to participate in the Top Transportation Teams program, which entails completing a survey on organizational culture.

This year’s winning districts with under 100 staff members include Franklin Square Union Free School District and Pembroke Central School District in New York, plus Wa-Nee Community Schools in Indiana. Franklin Square UFSD also secured the highest overall rating and highest employee participation rate.

Winning districts with over 100 staff members include Franklin Township Community School Corporation in Indiana, Hoover City Schools in Alabama and Rockwall Independent School District in Texas.

Five out of the six districts are two- or three-time award winners.

Family-Oriented Operations

“Family is everything to Rockwall ISD,” declared Director of Transportation Jennifer Gardella, who was the solo first-time winner.

The concept is so important at two-time consecutive winner Hoover City Schools that Director of Transportation Brad Hayn said he has one team member dedicated to alerting him when someone needs extra attention.

Todd Livesay, director of transportation for Franklin Township, pointed out the toughness of the pupil transportation job but noted that both drivers and students should be given grace since people are imperfect.

Matt Hostetter, transportation and school safety clerk for Wa-Nee, a three-time consecutive winner, shared that group sports games, breakfasts, overnight trips and birthday recognitions help foster closeness in the small district.

“We do lunch [together] every day, we drive each other’s kids, our community just has our back,” concurred Amy Zimmerman, 19A trainer and school bus driver for Pembroke CSD.

Gregg Fox, director of transportation for Franklin Square UFSD, noted that small districts have challenges too, like gossip spiraling out of control or toxic employees quickly poisoning the well. Civitella noted that such employees should not make up more than 10 percent of an organization. Hayn and Livesay added that consistent visionary leadership helps prevent these issues.

Gardella said that showing kindness, leading by excellence and anonymous surveys led to more open communication.

Showing Up & Being Present

Hayn and Livesay shared that asking staff how they are doing usually prompts cathartic conversations on personal issues rather than work ones. Even with over 190 team members, Hayn said he tries to have monthly individual meetings with each one.

These are interactions a leader can’t get while sitting at their desk, Civitella emphasized. Even basics like eye control during conversations are crucial for leaders, he added.

“Some of you might want to drive the bus to avoid some of these conflicts, I get it, but also there’s a benefit of driving a bus because you’re willing to do anything they’re going to do,” he said.

Hostetter confirmed that starting as a bus driver gave him credibility and better relationships with staff when he moved into a leadership position.

“I purposely make myself present,” said Fox, who drives a bus due to the driver shortage but also set up his office phone and email to come to his cellphone so he can spend more time in the drivers’ room.

Meanwhile, Gardella hosts a coffee and snack hour, where staff are allowed to come to her with questions and concerns but also solutions.

Panelists agreed that team lunches, pizza parties and themed celebrations assist with connection.

Culture is Personal

When Hostetter had cancer surgery earlier this year, he realized he was not alone through an outpouring of best wishes and cards from his staff. Zimmerman, likewise, shared that her staff supportively showed up when her father died and when another driver was diagnosed with cancer.

Hardships create even more connection opportunities that make a transportation team truly like family, Civitella said. “It’s not just those cool leadership terms that everyone’s using and throwing around, it’s got to be personal,” he added.

Word of mouth in the small, tight-knit area around Franklin Square UFSD has gotten retired police officers to come drive a bus, Fox added, which assists with the driver shortage and wage competition.

“I think sometimes as directors, we need to forget about all our problems, and we need to remember that’s a human being who has problems, too,” Hayn advised.

He related the story of a reliable driver, who he sent home to care for her ailing mother and gave extra time off after the mother’s death despite his driver shortage.

While he worried about coverage as drivers missed work due to personal issues, Livesay said that his staff gave grace and rallied around drivers undergoing tough situations at home, creating a cycle of altruism.

“All of our transportation coordinators, every trainer, every mechanic, everybody we had stepped up every day to make sure that we got those kids to school, and we really had no problem getting them home too,” he related. “So, all the worry that I had in my mind was just ridiculous because they are completely selfless.”

Wrapping Up

“It’s not about you, it’s about the team,” Fox underscored. “You’re there to steer the ship but you don’t want to be overbearing while you do it.”

He and Zimmerman agreed that it’s important to not micromanage but let staff take ownership of certain projects.

Livesay counseled transportation directors to have intentional conversations with their drivers, who will in turn spread their resulting positive feelings among their peers.

“Find yourself a mentor,” advised Gardella. She said hers is Teri Mapengo, director of transportation for Prosper Independent School District in Texas, which won a Top Transportation Teams award last year.

“Don’t outgrow the basics” of interacting with team members as humans, Civitella concluded.