Virginia Administrative Code › Title 8 - EDUCATION › Agency 20 - STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION › Chapter 70 - REGULATIONS GOVERNING PUPIL TRANSPORTATION › Part III - Requirements for School Bus Drivers › Section 8VAC20-70-350 - Training

Current through Register Vol. 40, No. 24, July 15, 2024
No person shall operate a school or activity bus
					 transporting pupils unless the person has:
1. Received classroom, demonstration, and
				  behind-the-wheel instruction in accordance with a program developed by the
				  Department of Education pursuant to §
										22.1-181
				  of the Code of Virginia.
2. For
				  persons not currently possessing a commercial driver's license, the individual
				  shall complete a minimum of 24 hours of classroom training and six hours of
				  behind-the-wheel training on a school bus that contains no pupil passengers.
				  For persons currently possessing a commercial driver's license, the individual
				  shall complete a minimum of four hours classroom training and three hours of
				  behind-the-wheel training on a school bus that contains no pupil passengers.
				  Behind-the-wheel training shall be administered under the direct on-board
				  supervision of a designated bus driver trainer. All drivers shall receive
				  training in the operation of buses representative of the type used in the
				  school division in which they will be employed and in the transportation of
				  students with special needs. Classroom instruction means training provided by a
				  qualified driver instructor through lectures, demonstrations, audio-visual
				  presentations, computer-based instruction, driving simulation devices, or
				  similar means. Instruction occurring outside a classroom qualifies as classroom
				  instruction if it does not involve actual operation of a school bus and its
				  components by the trainee. Behind-the-wheel training does not include time
				  spent riding in a school bus or observing the operation of a school bus when
				  the trainee is not in control of the vehicle.
The superintendent or his designee shall maintain a record
					 showing that the applicant has completed the training and has been approved to
					 operate a school or activity bus.
3. New transportation directors/supervisors
				  employed by school divisions shall complete the "New Director/Supervisor" class
				  conducted by the Department of Education within a year after being employed in
				  this position.
4. Each local school
				  board employee who assists in the transportation of students with autism
				  spectrum disorders on school buses, including individuals employed to operate
				  school buses and school bus aides, shall participate in a training program on
				  autism spectrum disorders established by the Board of Education. Such training
				  shall include the characteristics of autism spectrum disorders, strategies for
				  interacting with students with autism spectrum disorders, and collaboration
				  with other employees who assist in the transportation of students on school
				  buses.
Statutory Authority: §§
												22.1-16,
						22.1-176,
						and
						22.1-177 of the Code
						of Virginia.