VIDEO TRAINING PROGRAMS
FOR DRIVERS
NEW! "PUTTING THE BRAKES ON HARASSMENT: TRAINING FOR SCHOOL BUS DRIVERS"
This video training program will help your drivers recognize and address student-to-student harassment when it happens on their watch. A trainer's manual and handout for drivers is included. LEARN MORE
"STEERING CLEAR OF LIABILITY: TRAINING FOR SCHOOL BUS DRIVERS"
This video training program drives home the concern of unauthorized stops and schedules! Train drivers to avoid legal detours created when a driver
doesn't follow the rules. LEARN MORE
"CONFIDENTIAL RECORDS: TRAINING FOR SCHOOL BUS DRIVERS"
The only video training program about confidentiality created for school bus drivers! This award-winning program meets federally-mandated prerequisites for drivers to get the information they need. LEARN MORE
LEGAL ROUTES™ NEWSLETTER
“Your roadmap to pupil transportation law and compliance.” This bi-monthly newsletter offers analysis you can understand, experience you can benefit from, and a foundation you can depend on for the critical decisions transportation officials must make. LEARN MORE
Resources
Where Does It Say That? (download PDF)
Frequently asked questions, with answers and citations
Strategic Thinking Analysis (download)
7 questions to help you think about the legal detours you face.
Compliance
Information on compliance assistance with respect to the Fair Labor
Standards Act, Family and Medical Leave Act, and other federal laws
related to the workplace.
www.dol.gov/elaws
The Office for Civil Rights Revised Final Sexual Harassment Guidance
The Dear Colleague Letter from the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, US Department of Education
What Employers Need to Know about DOT Drug and Alcohol Testing /
Department of Transportation / Handbook (download PDF)
The Department of Transportation (DOT) has created a handbook for
employers of safety-sensitive workers, such as school bus drivers, who
must have DOT drug and alcohol tests. The Handbook includes information on:
(1) DOT program implementation and regulations; (2) identifying employees needing to be tested; (3) program policies and assigning responsibilities; (4) selecting service agents; (5) employee and
supervisor education; (6) drug and alcohol testing requirements; (7)
employer actions when employees violate the rules; (8) record keeping;
and (9) program compliance and inspections.
Transition Services Websites
What is it? Where the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act’s (“IDEA”) goals are equality of opportunity, full participation, independent living and economic self-sufficiency, transition services are clearly part and parcel of a school district’s obligations to drive toward these results for kids. IDEA is silent on implementation specifics of transition services. Transition programming requires true outside-the-box thinking from all involved in planning and implementation.
Congress made significant changes in the definition of “transition services” in the 2004 reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. This “coordinated set of activities for a child with a disability” must be a “results-oriented process,” that is focused on improving the academic and functional achievement of the child with a disability to facilitate the child's movement from school to post-school activities. IEP-team decision-making will be based on the individual child’s needs, taking into account the child's strengths, preferences, and interests. Placements can include instruction, related services, community experiences, the development of employment and other
post-school adult living objectives, and, when appropriate, acquisition of daily living skills and functional vocational evaluation.
These websites, though broad in scope, will be useful to you as you strive to understand your responsibilities in this important area of service to students with disabilities:
National Center on Secondary Education and Transition
www.ncset.org
(a first stop for learning about the “big picture” of transition)
VR Transition Study
www.vrtransitionstudy.org
(draft final report on transition services with implications for school transporters)
United We Ride
www.unitedweride.gov
(offers a variety of resources on access and mobility)
Easter Seals Project Action
projectaction.easterseals.com
(see especially Frequently Asked Questions and links to other resources)
Meeting Transportation Needs of Youth and Adults
ici.umn.edu/products/impact/183/183.pdf
(fine discussion of the importance of transportation in preparation for post K-12 living)
A Number of Resources relative to Emergency Planning are available as follows:
Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools Emergency Planning Web Site
Emergency planning is part of the Department's Lead and Manage My School series, a group of Web sites designed to support administrators. It offers emergency planning resources, grants, publications, and more. Includes excellent resources about student privacy rights and the schools in the context of emergency planning. www.ed.gov/admins/lead/safety/emergencyplan/index.html
Readiness and Emergency Management
for Schools (REMS) Technical Assistance (TA) Center
The REMS TA Center Web site offers additional school-based resources addressing emergency management through its four phases. Resources include three major publications series, archived training materials, referral links and the opportunity to pose direct technical assistance questions. Includes PDF, Missing Children: Getting Home After Disaster Strikes. rems.ed.gov
Practical Information on Crisis Planning:
A Guide for Communities and Schools
The U.S. Department of Education has developed this guide to provide schools and their communities with a general introduction to emergency management as it applies to schools and basic guidelines for developing school emergency management plans based on the four phases of emergency management. Accessible at Practical Information on Crisis Planning (download PDF), or through the Department of Education's Publications Center (ED Pubs) by calling (toll free) 1-877-433-7827 or by . The publication ID is ED003416P.
The Safe School Initiative
The U.S. Department of Education and the U.S. Secret Service collaborated to produce two reports and an interactive CD-ROM that outline a process for identifying, assessing and managing students who may pose a threat of targeted violence in schools, as well as provide ideas for creating safe school climates.
Threat Assessment in Schools: A Guide to Managing Threatening Situations and to Creating Safe School Climates
Final Report and Findings of the Safe School Initiative: Implications for the Prevention of School Attacks in the United States
Safe School and Threat Assessment Experience: Scenarios Exploring the Findings of the Safe School Initiative (Interactive CD-ROM)
The reports are accessible at www.ed.gov/admins/lead/safety/training/responding/crisis_pg34.html, and the CD may be ordered from the Department of Education's Publications Center (ED Pubs) by calling (toll free) 1-877-433-7827 or by e-mailing . The publication ID is ED002738C.
School Preparedness Virtual Town Hall
The Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Education hosted a virtual town hall on K–12 school preparedness to provide an overview of grant opportunities, planning, training and other preparedness tools available to school districts nationwide. www.vodium.com/MediapodLibrary
Additional Online Resources
Federal Web Locator
http://www.usa.gov/Agencies.shtml
List of all government agencies with websites
Cornell Legal Information Institute
www.law.cornell.edu:80/topics/employment_discrimination.html
Provides an overview of employment discrimination with links to federal and state laws and other resources available through the Internet.
NASDPTS Website
Sharing Student Medical and Health Information (download PDF)
Peggy Burns Information Report on sharing students' medical and health information.
IDEA website
idea.ed.gov/explore/view/p/
IDEA website exploring discipline information from 2006 special education regulations. Full of information of value as you collaborate with the special educators.
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission website
www.eeoc.gov
Information on all aspects of employment discrimination, with facts and guidance, laws and regulations, in a very accessible format.
Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)
www.ed.gov/policy/gen/guid/fpco/ferpa/index.html
The real scoop on privacy laws, with useful information for both schools and parents.
FAQ’s from the Office for Civil Rights about
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973
www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/504faq.html
Broad-based information about the requirements and protections of this important disability-related law.
justice.gov/crt/edo/faq.htm
The Justice Department has enforcement authority for a number of federal statutes, although only after a referral from another government agency. If OCR, after investigating a charge of discrimination against a school, school district, or college, determines that a violation of the law has occurred and conciliation efforts are unsuccessful, the Department of Education may refer the charge to the Department of Justice. The Department of Justice may, within its prosecutorial discretion, initiate litigation. This is a useful website with Q’s & A’s about a number of these federal statutes.