Mister Carter, the district director, told the board that school staff had reviewed videos from residents showing vehicles and a motorcycle illegally passing stopped school buses with extended stop-arms. He said the transportation supervisor, Mister Steffy, coordinated with Westridge High School audio-visual staff and students to make an informational video showing why the behavior is illegal and dangerous.

The video—made with participation from Sheriff Jeff Cassidy and two Tennessee state highway patrol officers—includes students from Westridge and was intended for distribution on social media and to local news outlets. Carter said the patrol officers asked for copies to share. Students and staff described creative decisions, including music choices, and board members praised the work and said they expected local outlets such as the Kingsport-area news to share the piece.

Carter framed the project as a deterrent: he cited two resident-recorded videos to explain the problem and said the video includes safety statistics about bus stop-arm compliance. Board members applauded the students and staff, and the transcript records plans to release the video to the community.

Why it matters: Passing stopped school buses is illegal and creates a known safety hazard for students entering or exiting buses. The board endorsed a locally produced public-education approach that involves law enforcement and students.

What’s next: The district intends to distribute the video through social media and provide copies to law enforcement and local news outlets; no formal board vote or funding decision was recorded in the transcript regarding the video project.