Each year, some of the best school bus drivers around the country gather for a unique competition. It’s called the Transporting Students with Disabilities (TSD) Roadeo. An event focused on driving skills and the handling of emergency situations involving students with special needs. Lake Washington School District (LWSD) transportation dispatcher Shana Wickline finished in third place at this year’s event. Wickline qualified for nationals after winning at regional and state levels. 

Her journey to the March 16 event in Frisco, TX was not easy. Wickline’s partner at the qualifying events had to drop out shortly before nationals. Organizers of the event scrambled to partner Wickline with a driver from the local school district in Frisco who could do more than compete. Her partner also picked Wickline up from the airport and hosted her the week she was there. The two prepared in the little time they had together and scored well enough to finish in the top three.

What may have helped was Wickline’s experience with the competition. She competed twice before at the national event finishing in eleventh and second place, respectively. However, this time around she was the lead driver and not the attendant like her previous two experiences. 

During the competition, bus drivers and their attendants are challenged on several aspects of transporting special needs students, including:

• A written test to be completed by teams prior to the event 
• Pre-check inspection
• Driving skills while maneuvering through a driving course
• Loading, unloading and securing students in wheelchairs
• Decision-making and reaction time in an emergency scenario
• Behavioral control of students with disabilities on board the bus

“Safety is such a huge aspect of what we do,” Wickline said. “Being able to make decisions on the fly and to know how to help a student in any situation is really what this competition prepares you for.”