When it comes to making sure students get to and from school safely, the team behind the wheel matters. The Dean Transportation team at Lake City works hard to constantly build a culture that fosters support and safety — not only for students, but for the team.
While Lake City Area Schools is a district small in number, with four schools and 1,100-plus students, the transportation team welcomes more than 830 of those students onto its 17 buses each day, spanning an impressive 266 square miles.
With 27 total staff, including one technician, four monitors and 22 drivers, the Lake City team knows what it means to be small but mighty. While the school district is modest in size, the transportation team sees firsthand the strength and coordination it takes to support students across a large geographic area.
Transportation Coordinator Connie Kenyon sees the work the team puts into building a culture of support every day, and how that allows team members to consistently put the safety and experience of their students first.
“We are a team and work together well,” Kenyon said. “We communicate well and are always listening to each other. … We’re very proud of the work we do.”
The Lake City team demonstrates its commitment to a supportive culture by providing new staff with a mentor who offers guidance, answers questions and helps team members feel supported from their first day on the job. Whether by assisting with paperwork, riding along on a new route or helping with students’ names, each mentor works hard to empower new drivers to achieve excellence in their role.
Kenyon credited that mentorship and camaraderie to the longevity of drivers on the team. Many of the drivers have been on the same route for close to eight years, some watching students grow from kindergarten to their senior year of high school.
“We are most proud of our constant commitment to safety, low turnover each year and our passion for the job we do,” Kenyon said. Simply put, “We love driving our kids to school.”
That passion isn’t created overnight. It’s the result of hard work and dedication to building a culture that allows each person to do their best job every day.
