Bus drivers have a tough job, and often get little of the credit. However, getting kids to school on time and safely is a big part of making them successful in the classroom, and in life.

Patty Garcia has been a Capistrano Unified School District bus driver for 28 years, and makes sure that her bus is running well.

“It’s very important that my bus is running great,” Garcia said. “We’re trying to make sure everything is safe.”

Garcia goes over a detailed checklist every day before hitting the road.

“Parents that don’t even know us, they’re entrusting their most precious cargo to us, a complete stranger,” Garcia said.

The district transports 4,700 students daily and gives over 1.1 million home-to-school rides in a given year. 

District bus drivers go through a lot of training before they’re ready to hit the road. After they’re hired, they need to do 20 hours of mandatory class work and 20 hours of actual driving before passing written and driving tests with the California Highway Patrol, and local trainers. Then they shadow a bus driver for three days, making sure they’re proficient on both larger and smaller Type 1 and 2 buses. They also have to get first aid certified and obtain a Department of Motor Vehicles medical card. All of that before they can drive students around South Orange County. And Patty says it doesn’t hurt to know the area. She’s a district alumna herself… Capo Valley High School Class of ’89.

“It felt good to be in my little comfort zone of where I grew up, the schools that I went to… it was familiar," said Garcia, who is a Capistrano Valley High School alumn and knows the area well. "And every day when I come to work I feel like it’s not work.”

Garcia says she’s driven at least thousands of students in her nearly three decades in school buses, and as she starts and ends each student's day, she’s as much a part of the education process as anyone. Making learning possible and doing it all with positivity and a big smile.

“Sometimes it’s the first person that says, ‘Good morning’ to them. Some kids are home alone. Their parents already left to work or something like that, and we’re the first person they see. So it’s real important the impact we show to these kids,” said Garcia.