PHOTOS: 2016 Photo Contest

Winner: Tim Bentz of Cascade School District in Leavenworth, Washington, took this photo of pear orchards on a brilliant autumn day in the Dryden area. Can you spot the yellow school bus?

Winner: Scott Goble, the retired former director of transportation of Canandaigua (N.Y.) City Schools, got this shot during filming for a public service announcement (PSA) addressing the issues of illegally passing school buses and stop-arm cameras. The PSA was created by the New York Association for Pupil Transportation and sponsored by Fortress Mobile. Canandaigua was the host for the filming, and district students were actors. “We had them for several hours on a not very nice day,” Goble told SBF.

Winner: Lanette Daw of Independent School District of Boise (Idaho) City No. 1 snapped this photo of some animated elementary school students on her bus last fall. They were very excited about heading home from school.

Honorable Mention: Derek Graham, North Carolina state pupil transportation director in Raleigh, captures a nice moment at the 2015 North Carolina State Fair school bus safety exhibit, as three little girls visit with Buster the School Bus.

Honorable Mention: Jackie Parker, a parent volunteer for Ross Montessori School in Carbondale, Colorado, caught this striking backdrop. Sonya Hemmen, head of school as well as a school bus driver, drove her first field trip, which was for fourth, fifth, and sixth graders, to the Colorado National Monument, near Grand Junction, Colorado.

Honorable Mention: Scott Thorner of Star and Strand Transportation Inc. in Troy, New York, captured an image of drivers working together on their pre-trip checks, showcasing the team spirit often on display in pupil transportation.

Also Noteworthy: Kurt Gerould of Rush-Henrietta Central Schools in Henrietta, New York, caught a double rainbow shining right above this school bus.

Also Noteworthy: Barb Kracheck of Olmsted Falls (Ohio) City Schools captured a moment late in the day of students boarding the bus after a fun-filled trip to the local park.

Also Noteworthy: Nick Clark, a vehicle maintenance mechanic for Hemet (Calif.) Unified School District, got a striking shot of the front of one of the district's buses.

An Honorable Mention went to Tim Moss, the transportation director at Logansport (Ind.) Community School Corp. Every year, Moss drives any veterans who don't have transportation to the Annual Memorial Day Services, which are held at a local cemetery.

Honorable Mention: Gene Shillingford of Neshaminy School District in Langhorne, Pennsylvania, shares a quiet moment of beauty in the district's bus yard around 6 a.m. one winter morning.