A Greeley Central graduate earning her degree in the automotive program at Aims Community College already has a job lined up after college.
The alumna’s apprenticeship as a mechanic with Greeley-Evans District 6 Transportation Services, where she got her start in the automotive industry, will turn into a longer career opportunity once she graduates from the Aims program.
In addition to furthering her career, Camila Clark has become a piece of the puzzle that holds the district’s transportation department together.
Clark joined the transportation department as a mechanic after graduating high school nearly a year ago. Clark developed a love for cars as a child but felt pushed toward more scholarly post-secondary options rather than trade work.
As a high school graduate, while working a job in fast food, she decided to switch lanes into the automotive field — both through education and employment. During her second semester of college at Aims, she applied to work at District 6.
“It was just a really good opportunity to insert myself into the automotive world,” Clark said.
Since joining the team, Clark has found her place in the male-dominated industry. She said with each shift, she has more and more fun working on vehicles.
As Clark became one of five mechanics at transportation services, the department became one step closer to resolving a nearly decade-long and nationwide issue of an employee shortage.
A lack of employees led to a struggle to remain reliable — cutting back on routes because drivers could not meet them. Within the past few years, even with a full staff, transportation services could only be about 80% reliable, according to an update at Monday’s Board of Education work session from Kent Henson, assistant superintendent of support services at District 6.
The only solution to gain back reliability involved expanding the transportation crew. However, this endeavor required administrators to think outside the box for retaining and recruiting employees.
Henson shared the department implemented appealing job qualities for the bus driver gig, such as covering the cost of a $1,000 training program upon completion, a starting bonus of $3,000 for employees with a commercial driver’s license and increasing the starting pay from $21.89 in training to $23.07 if they stay after completion. The department also made the bus-driving position a 40-hour work week, 12 months a year.
Since taking these measures, the department has seen a 36% increase in the total number of employees from January 2023 to April 2024, according to Henson. This includes a 34% spike in bus monitors, a 58% spike in bus drivers and a 150% spike in mechanics.
Along with a growth in bus drivers, transportation services also incorporated additional efforts to keep up with routes within the district. In case of a driver deficiency, all employees at transportation services except for two are certified to drive the buses. This includes the leadership team, shop staff, safety, recruiting and more.
The department’s routing staff also combined and adjusted routes to best meet the needs of the students and drivers. In total, the district has 30 regular routes and 20 special education routes, Henson said.
Among 7,094 eligible riders, the average number of riders each day sits at 2,223 with about 45 students on each route. For those 50 routes, the department has 52 eligible drivers, 14 substitutes, seven employees who can step up to help if needed and five people in training, according to Henson.
“Unlike a lot of districts, the transportation department here in this district … is in pretty good shape,” Henson said.
Similar to drivers, the need for more mechanics, such as Clark, started when the department only had two full-time mechanics. This caused an issue of keeping up with inspections and not getting enough buses out for the routes.
Bringing in more mechanics has helped with the flow of inspections and getting buses out in a timely manner, Henson said. The district’s updated fleet of buses has also improved reliability.
With the 2017 mill levy override and its renewal in 2022, the district has flipped the ages of the bus fleet over the past five years. Out of 54 buses, 46 are between 0-5 years old, according to Henson.
The advantages of having an updated fleet, Henson said, include more flexible bus sizes, lower emissions, increased fuel economy and a warranty that makes them easier to get fixed.
The district also has eight buses available for trips and about seven buses, a fluctuating number, are under inspection or repair at a time. A day in the life of Clark typically involves solo work on smaller vehicles and offering a helping hand to her co-workers on larger projects.
The job opportunity has given Clark hands-on experience to better prepare for her career in the automotive industry, expressing excitement by how much she still has to learn. The unique part of her job has been learning from veterans in the field.
“They always give me a chance to learn things or help me with my schooling when I have questions,” Clark said.
Working for District 6 has provided Clark with opportunities for personal growth and has challenged her professionally, she said. She looks forward to completing her degree at Aims, obtaining her remaining certification and continuing to work for transportation services.
