Special-needs school bus driver, colleague on the job for the long haul

CIRCLEVILLE, Ohio — Two school bus drivers here discuss their love for and dedication to their job; one has worked with special-needs students for 22 years, and the other has just started driving school buses, Ty Ankrom, the superintendent of the Pickaway County Educational Service Center, wrote in a newsletter.

Special-needs school bus driver Mona Clifton has always worked with children with special needs, according to Ankrom. She drives a bus for Brooks-Yates School, and told Ankrom that loving kids is crucial to the job.

Meanwhile, her colleague, Jennifer Rieder, who just started driving school buses this fall, plans to follow in the footsteps of her father, Don Neff, who retired in May after having driven a school bus for Teays Valley Schools since 2008.

“I’m retiring from here. They’ll have to kick me out,” she told Ankrom.

Both drivers also told Ankrom that they like having an impact on students at the beginning and end of the day.

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