School & Family Magazine Newstand Iredell-Statesville Winter 2017 | Page 17

Iredell-Statesville
Schools Takes Part
as State Celebrates
100 Years of
Motorized School
Transportation
The state of North Carolina celebrated a huge milestone
on Tuesday, September 5, 2017. Events for this special day
were organized by the Department of Public Instruction (DPI),
the Governor’s Highway Safety Program (GHSP), and the
Department of Transportation (DOT) and centered around the
celebration of 100 years since the first motorized school bus
service started in the state. The district’s most famous bus, a
1931 bus named Betsy, joined in the celebration for the day. Betsy
was used to visually compare the differences and advancements
from 1931 to buses manufactured today.
While this event celebrated the advancement in motorized
school transportation, the day also involved acknowledging school
bus safety. Mark Ezzell, GHSP director, announced Governor Roy
Cooper’s proclamation to honor September as Safe to School
Month. Concerning school bus safety, Ezzell also added, “It is our
duty to ensure that we are doing everything we can to practice
safe driving on our roadways to prevent injury and death to our
state’s greatest resource—our children.”
Although the month is over, we ask that you review the School
Bus Stop Laws so we can continue to keep our students safe.
Portions of this article were adapted from North Carolina
Celebrates 100 Years of Motorized
School Transportation. NC Bus
Safety, 2017. www.ncbussafety.org.
Iredell-Statesville School & Family 15