A hands-on team-building exercise, sessions and awards addressing safety and industry achievement, and a trade show showcasing the latest technology were some of the highlights at this year's NAPT conference.
PHOTOS: Highlights from NAPT Conference in Columbus
The National Association for Pupil Transportation (NAPT) held its annual conference at the Hyatt Regency in downtown Columbus, Ohio, from Nov. 2 to 5.
On Tuesday, NAPT Executive Director Mike Martin greeted attendees as they entered the association’s annual trade show at the Greater Columbus Convention Center.
Band students from Whetstone High School paraded around the trade show floor as attendees entered the convention center.
Lloyd Givens, maintenance manager at Special School District of St. Louis County in Mo. (left), takes a look under the hood of IC Bus's chargE electric bus. The school bus manufacturer shared news of the launch of a new business unit of its parent company, Navistar, to deliver customized electrification solutions for school buses and other commercial vehicles.
S.A.F.E. Gates demonstrated its illuminated, 48-inch retrofit stop-arm gates. The gate is designed with LED lights that can be seen from over 1.5 miles away, according to the company.
Rosco Vision Systems featured its Eye-Max LED, an integrated front crossview mirror with driver alert LEDs and illuminating under mount lights.
Karen Main, the founder and CEO of Innovations in Training, led attendees through a team-building exercise.
Groups had 17 minutes to build with Legos a model of a small building that was located outside the conference room. Each team member had assigned Lego pieces that only they could place. They were only allowed to go outside the room to look at the model one at a time.
In a peer-to-peer learning session, Landon Allen, the director of information technology at Spencer (Iowa) Community School District, shared details on implementing Wi-Fi on the district's buses.
The sharp drawing skills of students across the U.S. were showed off among the finalists in the 2019 National School Bus Safety Week Poster Contest.
Derek Graham, a consultant and the former state director for North Carolina, laid out a timeline of pupil transportation's relationship with seat belts on buses and their safety and behavior benefits.
During the NAPT awards ceremony, Ken Hedgecock (second from right), the current vice president of sales, marketing, and service for Thomas Built Buses, was recognized with the Lifetime Achievement Award. He is shown here with National School Transportation Association (NSTA) President John Benish Jr. (far left), NAPT president Barry Sudduth, and National Association of State Directors of Pupil Transportation Services (NASDPTS) President Mike LaRocco.
More than 100 attendees joined the federal issues forum with Bruce Landsberg, vice chairman for the National Transportation Safety Board. He went over several of the agency’s safety recommendations, including those for physical performance testing, evacuation training, and fire suppression systems.
Safety solutions supplier Safe Fleet demonstrated its Predictive Stop Arm system, which senses when a car is going to run a stop arm and provides an audio alert to warn students not to cross the street. Watch video of the demonstration <a href="https://www.facebook.com/schoolbusfleet/videos/497910834144306/?__xts__[0]=68.ARCTUdOJo7CZFtW7PIkwFJ6FrrksjetE_dbAG_uk6SnP6u8tTYS5YbeIEGz2Ey44NaKGvBbgT6ULv5RTuKBzyzNyBvfRywQPqicT9U2NcNAQAd7PbFHz3Ualpoc9aPRapqsCCnkiWWpA6rNRSnRhaiYgJIv31SsbaMjz6An59AN_YJO4rNXNh_UYWiWQDqhsS9qWX3bPEhMF-196BCPJP_97RhZattQqeE-tF_JAGUjgfTfQb7gE372rGt1pWfk9bieCaI4Y8DNvh7NCwmjSF14uV4xeSChX4n2AdCtoJwois4t_OXrN1Cd3pCc1LvauF-lAtC8Lgf8hohTArVHBlleg_9pTeflfSuh6TumigNGoybIn5IKxF6Jd7zJoc81DZuK-56sPHR4z_TuvilZ4cu0oBy5y7l4h9sHHN
Mike LaRocco (right), president of NASDPTS, Becky Weber (center), a representative from the NSTA, and John Whetsel, a representative from the National Sheriff's Association, discussed several illegal passing prevention efforts during a town hall meeting on Monday.
School Bus Fleet’s Executive Editor Nicole Schlosser presented the Administrator of the Year award to John P. Hennessey, the transportation director for Worcester (Mass.) Public Schools.
Thomas Built Buses showcased its new Type A school and activity bus, the Minotrek. The manufacturer recently partnered with Trans Tech for the new bus, which can carry up to 20 passengers and is available with a gasoline or diesel engine.
Blue Bird showcased its Vision Propane school bus equipped with a low nitrogen-oxide (NOx) Roush CleanTech propane engine.
Tyler Technologies invited attendees to enjoy a throwback experience and play the 1988 Commodore 64 “School Bus Driver” video game. For every participant that played, Tyler made a $20 donation to the NAPT Foundation. More than 100 attendees joined in, and the Tyler Foundation recognized their contributions by increasing the total donation to $10,000. Shown here (from left) are Michael Martin, NAPT president; Ted Thien, GM and VP of Tyler’s transportation solutions group; and Steven Kalmes, president of the NAPT Foundation.
Illuminated safety product company First Light showcased its illuminated and retroflective sign, which is designed to meet school bus regulations in all 50 states.
On display at The Lion Electric Co. booth was a 3D printer creating mini LionC school bus models for attendees.