As the school year quickly approaches, a shortage of bus drivers looms over Ellsworth schools.
Classes for younger grades begin Aug. 30, and staff have until then to fill three positions for bus drivers, or risk affecting scheduling for the start and end of the school day.
Amy Boles, the superintendent of the Ellsworth School Department, said that a complicating factor is that bus drivers need a commercial driver's license, or CDL, with a passenger endorsement.
"So we've had a lot of people call since this has kind of broke news, and offered to help, and they have their CDL but in order to drive a bus in Maine you have to have your CDL with passenger endorsement, which is another certification," Boles said.
The driver shortages could mean current bus drivers needing to drive multiple routes, meaning some students will arrive late to start the day, and get home later. It also means teachers dealing with students arriving at different times in the morning, and needing to watch students after school until buses take them home.
"It definitely affects students learning, if they lose learning time in the morning, and then it certainly affects staff morale, when kids are coming and going at all different times of the day, and then of course the impact on children and families," Boles said.
School bus drivers in Ellsworth work part-time hours, but are eligible for benefits, and can get additional hours by driving for field trips and extracurriculars.
The school department also has openings for teachers, educational technicians and substitutes.
