The 17th National Congress on School Transportation (NCST), which had been rescheduled from May 2020 to May 2021 in Des Moines, Iowa, has been postponed again as the COVID-19 pandemic wears on.

The NCST Steering Committee made the decision to push the in-person Congress back again after receiving input from 39 state delegates that travel restrictions are still in effect for them, and based on current public health measures in Des Moines and Polk County, Iowa, Patrick McManamon, the NCST Steering Committee chair, announced in a letter to Congress participants and other interested parties on Monday.

The Steering Committee also determined, based on state delegate input and other factors, that a virtual Congress this May is not feasible, he added in the letter.

The committee will decide soon whether to reschedule the on-site Congress to 2022 or 2025.

For more information on the postponement, contact Patrick McManamon at Patrick.McManamon@vermont.gov or (802) 828-3757.

Since 1939, the NCST (formerly the National Conferences on School Transportation) has been held periodically with the primary objective of ensuring safe, efficient transportation for schoolchildren. Since 1980, the 300-plus delegates from around the country who comprise the Congress have convened every five years.