LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- More than 100 prospective bus drivers went to Monday's "hiring blitz" at C.B. Young Service Center looking for a job with Jefferson County Public Schools.

The one-day hiring event sought to fill a vital need for Kentucky's largest school district about two weeks before the 2022-23 school year begins. JCPS Chief Operations Officer Chris Perkins had said the district hoped to hire about 100 more bus drivers for the upcoming school year.

"The number of positions we have open fluctuates, but every driver that we're able to hire today will help relieve some of the pressure, because, obviously, just like every other school district, we're short drivers right now and that will increase our service that we're able to provide for students," said Ken Stites, transportation specialist for JCPS.

Applicants vying for the jobs — which pay $21.69 per hour plus incentives for attendance and taking challenging routes — completed paperwork, interviewed with district staff and went to Concentra for physicals and mandatory drug testing during the five-hour hiring event.

Marsha Richardson Bullitt was among the 109 applicants who came to Monday's one-day job fair. The former bus monitor for students with disabilities left for another line of work as a shuttle driver for UPS but said she decided to return to JCPS after hearing about the district's need for bus drivers.

"I know that our kids here really need it, and with us having a shortage of drivers, it's very important that we do try to get our kids to and from school," Bullitt said. "... I want to try to be a good role model for the kids and be able to listen to them and help them with their needs. That's what my goal is if I become a driver."

Robert Farris said he hoped to land a solid second job driving a school bus for JCPS. He currently handles deliveries for Feeders Pet Supply on Dixie Highway and has free time during the morning hours.

"I don't have a CDL right now but I have studied the book," he said. "... I believe that I can obtain that."

Farris said becoming a bus driver for JCPS "would be a blessing."

"Hopefully, I am one of the chosen ones and be able to get a job, whether it be driving or whether it be a monitor," he said. "But I would really like the opportunity."

JCPS isn't the only school district in the area looking for more bus drivers weeks before the 2022-23 school year begins. Oldham County Schools had to push back start and dismissal times for middle and high schools to accommodate a shortage of bus drivers. Lori Webb, the district's communications director, said OCS needs about 23 more drivers to cover all 75 of its bus routes.

"We've got a pretty urgent need," she said.

OCS offers bus drivers starting salaries of $16.92 after the Oldham County Board of Education voted to increase pay by 3% throughout the district, she said.

"We're on par with a lot of the other districts but we can't compete with JCPS in that respect," Webb said.

Other districts, however, have every bus route covered ahead of the 2022-23 school year.

Greater Clark County Schools Superintendent Mark Laughner has said the school corporation's transportation staffing "is in good shape." And John Wright, community relations specialist for Hardin County Schools, said the district's roughly 200 routes are fully-staffed. The district only needs to add about a dozen substitute drivers to help cover for absences.

"We are hiring substitute drivers because, as you can imagine, we need those," Wright said. "If we have three or four drivers out sick one day, then we'll have to pull people in."

HCS has upped pay for its bus drivers and allowed those who have retired to count past experience if they take the same or similar jobs when they're rehired, he said.

"It's just moving the numbers around and making sure that you're taking care of those folks who take care of your students," he said. "Our bus drivers and bus monitors are very important people because they're the first face that a student sees and the last face the student sees."

Shelby County Public Schools also has every route covered heading into the 2022-23 school year with two substitute drivers on standby and another two in training, said Cyndi Powell Chaney, the district's public relations coordinator.

"Having more substitute drivers would be better, but we are glad to have all routes covered," she said in an email to WDRB News.

While districts like HCS have their buses fully-staffed with drivers, they're always looking for more potential hires.

"Even though our routes are full, we're not going to stop looking for those folks because we know that we're two to three to four to five drivers away from not being in good shape," Wright said.

Even though JCPS wrapped up a one-day hiring event for bus drivers, applications are always welcome.

"Our posting for the bus driver position is open throughout the entire year," Stites said. "This is a hiring event today, but we will accept applications tomorrow and the next day, right through the last day of school and through the summer."

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