Sumter transportation director pledges routing audit, parent app and staffing changes to curb late buses

Sumter School District’s transportation director, Marlon Dantzler, told the board on Feb. 25 he has launched an effort to improve reliability after repeated late buses and staffing shortages, including a routing audit by an outside consultant and a roll‑out plan for the MyRide K12 parent app.

Dantzler said his department is pursuing three immediate priorities: accountability, consistency and efficiency. He described a package of operational changes implemented since his arrival: raising bus monitor pay to $11 per hour, repairing and planning upgrades for bus cameras, ensuring two‑way radios are installed on buses, moving payroll tracking for drivers to the district’s Frontline system, and launching a new Facebook page and the MyRide K12 parent app in pilot schools.

“Communication was a big thing,” Dantzler said. He said the MyRide K12 app will rely on accurate PowerSchool addresses and that the district plans to extend the app districtwide by the end of the school year after a pilot at Pekala Springs, Manchester and Cherryville. Dantzler said parents who download the app can receive delay notices for their child’s bus route and track routes built from PowerSchool addresses.

Dantzler told trustees he had retrained staff on the state routing software and reduced the number of unaccounted students in the routing system from about 7,000 to 1,500 after repeated training sessions with the vendor and the state. He said the state can charge districts for “outer right miles” and that accurate routes are therefore financially important.

On staffing, Dantzler said the district has hired seven drivers since he arrived and added two driver trainers, but he described continuing turnover: three retirees were rehired temporarily, one driver retired during his tenure, five resigned and two were terminated. He noted about 50 full‑time drivers, five part‑time, 12 hourly drivers, 12 coaches who also drive and 14 substitute drivers, and said recruiting remains difficult despite more than 100 applicants during his tenure.

Dantzler proposed several next steps: hire two dispatchers (centralized radio/phone support), establish a driver sign‑on or retention bonus, purchase additional activity buses so the district can run more trips in-house, and commission a routing analysis consultant to audit routes that “haven’t been audited since consolidation in 2011.” He also discussed using vetted alternative‑transportation contractors for specialized needs (for example, wheelchair transport) when required.

Trustees asked about a centralized bus lot at the Lane property and whether drivers are stationed near their neighborhoods. Dantzler said a single centralized lot creates tradeoffs because of long drive times for some routes and driver start times; he said current bus lots are geographically situated to reduce driver travel time to routes. He agreed a routing audit would reveal whether the district needs more drivers or simple route realignment.

On other operational items, Dantzler said his office upgraded bus monitors’ pay from $8.59 to $11 per hour, repaired many on‑bus cameras (but plans a future cloud upgrade), purchased an activity‑trip software replacement ahead of the vendor’s retirement of the old system, and will pilot pre‑registration for bus service (target start for registration process in 2025–26 with implementation for 2026–27).

Ending: Dantzler asked for board support for the consultant routing audit, two dispatchers in next year’s budget and consideration of retention incentives. Board members asked for a timetable for the routing study and for the district to prioritize driver recruitment and routing accuracy ahead of spring testing and the next school year.