School districts across Michigan have been and continue to struggle to find enough school bus drivers to serve students. “In a survey of 46 out of the 56 intermediate school districts in Michigan, more than half of the ISDs call bus drivers a critical shortage area,” reported Bridge Michigan.*
Mid Michigan College, in partnership with Regen Trucking School, offers CDL Class B Passenger School Bus Short-Term Training—and now the training is more accessible than ever.
Auxilio Services provides contracted school bus drivers to Clare, Coleman, Farwell, Gladwin, Harrison, and Sanford-Meridian schools.
“We’re also feeling the pinch as we look for qualified drivers to fill the needs of our clients,” said Rick Seebeck, Operations Manager at Auxilio Services.
To combat this widespread issue, Auxilio is partnering with Mid to offer the Auxilio Services Scholarship to those who complete Mid’s CDL Class B Passenger School Bus Training.
Any student, 18 years of age or older, who commits to one year of employment with Auxilio, is eligible to receive the scholarship, which provides funds to cover training costs, Med Card requirements, and licensing fees.
“The value of the scholarship is over $2,000, so this is a great opportunity for students who are interested in driving for local school districts,” shared Autumn Matthews, Director of Workforce & Economic Development at Mid.
There is no application for the scholarship; interested students can simply contact the Technical Education Center team at Mid, who will then connect them with an Auxilio representative.
Mid’s Class B Passenger School Bus Short-Term Training begins February 24 and takes just 40 hours over 5 days, with two days of virtual classroom training and three days behind the wheel.
“We’d like to encourage those who may be interested to get in touch with us soon,” noted Matthews. “There are some preliminary steps to take and we want to make sure students are ready for the February training start date!”
Students who don’t take advantage of Auxilio Services Scholarship are still welcome and encouraged to interview with Auxilio once their training is complete.
For more information, visit midmich.edu/cdl, call (989) 386-6614, or email training@midmich.edu.
