BURLINGTON, Ky. — In Boone County, parents, kids and school staff are heading into a year that continues to be filled with the uncertainty brought on by COVID-19.

As the pandemic lingers on with rising case numbers due to the delta variant, some strict rules are being put in place on Boone County Schools’ buses.

John Rachlinski is gearing up for his 18th year of driving a school bus for the district. It started out as a temporary job he thought he’d do for one year after he retired.

Rachlinski's bus. (Spectrum News 1/Sam Knef)

“I liked it so much, I became a permanent driver,” he said. “There’s a satisfaction of driving kids safely. Actually, the satisfaction of doing something every day, that you’re accomplishing something. When you’re retired, you end up doing nothing. This really gives you something useful to do.”

“It changed a lot of my outlook on life. It also made me a safer driver,” Rachlinski said. “The main objective of driving this bus is to keep the kids safe on the way to school and the way home. We have the precious cargo.”

Keeping those kids safe comes with some added challenges during a pandemic. Masks will be required on all buses for all students and drivers.

“When they get on the bus, they’re not allowed without having a mask on. We have hand sanitizer when they board the bus in that white thing,” Rachlinski said. “At that point, I always say 'Good morning' to them all. And they all say 'Good morning' back.”

Kids will also have permanent assigned seats to help with contact tracing if it’s needed. Masks will be provided for students who don’t have them.

Transportation Director Robert Barrix said parents can reach out if they have any questions but said their kids are in good hands.

“We’re gonna do everything we can to do what we’ve always done, which is take our kids to and from school safely. Now we can’t control everything in the pandemic, but we are gonna do everything we can to keep those kids masked, keep them clean, keep them safe and keep them in the same assigned seats,” he said. “Now, when you’re driving down the roadway at 40 miles per hour, with 60 kids in the back, and you can’t even see into some of the seats, it’s a little difficult for them to play mask police. But they will do their best to make those kids comply with those regulations.”

Boone County school buses. (Spectrum News 1/Sam Knef)

Rachlinski said his approach is friendly, yet firm.

“You have to be firm, and you have to be consistent,” he said. “First day of school, I always have a little bit of a short meeting, telling everybody what my expectations are of the children.”

Finding people like Rachlinski comes with its own set of challenges, said Barrix.

The district has openings for as many as 50 drivers.

“We could use 15 to 20 guys right away. If the bus showed up this morning with drivers, 15 to 20, we could probably put them on the payroll by Wednesday,” Barrix said. “Clearly, we’d love to be fully staffed every year. And prior to the pandemic, we were on a great trajectory to be that way. But since the pandemic, as you can see, going up and down the roadway, everybody’s got the hiring signs out. I’m not sure where everybody went, but I think every business out here in Northern Kentucky and Cincinnati is looking for additional employees right now.”

“So if you’re sitting at home right now, wondering, 'What am I going to do this fall?'and you want to help us get our kids to school this fall, we’d sure like to talk to you,” Barrix said.

As for Rachlinski, he needs no convincing.

“Everyday, I always give them a fact of the day,” he said. “Today is actually National Wiggle Your Toe Day.”

“It’s a very rewarding job. It really is. The last two years, or year and half, when you don’t see their faces, that made a difference, you know, you like to see their smiles. I miss that part of it,” he said.

Everybody in the transportation department, even secretaries and Barrix himself, can jump behind the wheel of the bus to get kids where they need to be, he said. But they’re always looking for more help.