GREECE, N.Y. (WROC) — The need for school bus drivers is a conversation in school districts across the country, and our region is no exception. In Greece Thursday night, school leaders held a career fair, hoping to hire new drivers.

David Richardson is the Executive Director of Student Operations in Greece. He said the team is hoping to bring on at least 10 new bus drivers and 10 attendants. 

“Our numbers have dipped a little bit, with sickness and age, and retirements,” he said.

Richardson said the school commands a fleet of 220 buses, with 10,000 students, and about 88-89 school and program stops each weekday. 

“So, now is a great time to have a recruitment fair,” he said.

He said the more drivers they can bring in, the fewer times parents will get robocalls saying their child’s bus isn’t running. 

“We’re trying to get to avoid getting to that point where student learning is disrupted,” said Richardson.

“We need to and from school daily. We need bus drivers really, really bad right now,” said Teygan Moss-Grant, a bus driver for Greece. “(Sigh). The need for bus drivers is essential right now,” she added.

Sonjoa McCarthy is a transportation assistant. She says there are even some familiar faces here, with former drivers re-applying. 

“We’ve had a few of them come back now because they are just thrilled to be here,” she said.

Dan Rybka is one of them. Other careers he was trying– just didn’t have the same perks. “Benefits are good, so it’s a nice job,” he said.

And there’s another big plus: “They are all great kids,” he said.

If you missed the career fair, you can always reach out to the Greece transportation webpage to apply. The school told News 8 they plan on holding another career fair in the summer.