"Our bus drivers are some of the most important people in CHCCS," said Dr. Todd LoFrese, assistant superintendent of support services. "Each morning, families across the district entrust their children to our drivers to get them to-and-from school safely. And each day our drivers make sure they live up to that expectation. You just have to see the smiles on the faces of our students to know how important their bus driver is to them, making sure they have a great start and end to their school day."
The average bus ride for CHCCS students is 15 minutes, while the average time across the state is 23 minutes, making the district one of three in the state with this average ride time. CHCCS students also average later pick-up times than others across NC. For CHCCS, the earliest pick-up time is 6:40 a.m. and the state average is 5:48 a.m.
The 2015-16 Classified Employee of the Year, Mark Foushee, is one of the district's 68 bus drivers. Every day, over 4,500 students are riding CHCCS buses. The Transportation Department has over 90 staff members, including bus monitors and drivers. CHCCS operates 50 regular buses and 16 mini buses for morning and afternoon routes. There are an additional 19 activity buses used for special events, athletic competitions and field trips.
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| CEOY Mark Foushee, greets every student with a smile and a high five every time they board his bus. |
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| On the last day of school for 2015 (June 12), students from his bus presented Foushee with a congratulatory picture they made him for being named CEOY. |