Albuquerque Public Schools walking school bus programs will expand with $2.7M federal grant

A walking school bus is one Albuquerque neighborhood’s solution to the hazards children reported on their route to school. The Albuquerque Public School District was awarded a $2.7 million federal grant to add walking school buses across the district, aiming to include 56 new schools by 2031.

“We, the neighbors in the community, were getting information that the children walking to school were getting harassed,” said Sandra Perea, one of the adults who walks students to school in the International District as part of a walking school bus. “The girls were being cat-called. Gang members were trying to recruit the little kids.”

The area has changed a lot in the last three years, Perea said.

The walking school bus program at Wilson Middle School and Whittier Elementary School has also changed over the years. It’s grown from a group of neighborhood volunteers to a program in coordination with the school district and the city of Albuquerque, where bus "conductors" are given crossing-guard training and compensated for showing up in rain or shine, and hazards along the route are promptly reported to city officials. There is also a walking school bus at Inez Elementary School and a long-standing program at Kirtland Elementary School.

State regulations dictate that regular school bus routes do not include homes within 1 mile of an elementary school or 1.5 miles of a middle school.

Other walking school bus programs have atrophied over time, said Wilson Middle School Community Coordinator Kelly Davis, and compensating conductors helps ensure longevity. The program standard is at least three conductors per walking school bus and one school liaison, said Cordell Bock, a district planner and the Albuquerque Public School District’s Vision Zero for Youth project manager. The conductors are paid $30 per day, and community members can also volunteer to walk with students.

The Wilson and Whittier program has increased students’ sense of belonging, Davis said, and she’s seen parents receive direct services because of the walking school bus. The supervised walks help students who are new to the area feel included in the school and help students who have been suspended re-integrate, according to Davis.

With close to five pedestrian deaths per 100,000 people, New Mexico ranks No. 1 in pedestrian fatalities, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Bernalillo County easily takes the top spot for number of pedestrians killed in the state. In 2023, 52 of the 105 pedestrians killed in New Mexico died in Bernalillo County. The International District where Wilson Middle School and Whittier Elementary School are located is a problem area for pedestrian deaths, Bock said. Deaths tend to be clustered near arterial roads like Central or Coors.

The U.S. Department of Transportation grant will pay for conductors and program materials, which will include things like training materials, high visibility vests, whistles and stop sign paddles. The federal dollars will allow the school district to significantly boost its efforts to make streets safer for students, APS Superintendent Gabriella Blakey said in a statement.

On the Route

Early on a recent Friday morning, high-vis vests were passed around, and a box of donuts sat open on the table in the Whittier Elementary community hub room, a space stocked with extra coats and shoes for any children who might need them.

Davis checked the contents of a backpack: a metal grabber for picking up needles or other hazards and a disposal container for used needles. When picking up needles, Davis and her colleagues try to take the danger seriously, imagining the needle as a snake that could bite. Needles are not picked up when children are present.

The bag was packed in a cloth wagon along with child-sized jackets, mittens and hats, just in case a student needs some extra warmth. "Stop" signs in hand, the small team set out on their route to Wilson Middle School, stopping at apartments along the way for elementary and middle school kids to accompany them on their walk to school.

The route averages 20 to 30 students. On just over half of their walks this school year, they’ve encountered dangerous waste.

“Watch out for poop,” the adults called out more than once. An electric cord running from a car where someone was camping out crossed one sidewalk, presenting a tripping hazard. A broken needle was found along the route, discarded in the gutter. An overflowing dumpster blocked one sidewalk.

Whenever a hazard arose, one of the grown ups would stand next to it as the rest of the gaggle walked by. At street corners, one of the adults enters the road first, holding up their stop sign. The team uses whistles to signal — one whistle for stop and two for go.

At Wilson Middle School, the route’s halfway point, Davis went inside to get a pair of socks for a girl who wasn’t wearing any.

As they waited, students joked with conductor Andrea Gonzalez. One gave her a hug. Motivated by an enjoyment for working with kids and a desire to help the community, Gonzalez has been with the program since its pilot, two days a week. She also works for the Boys and Girls Club and has two kids of her own.

“I love kids,” Gonzalez said. “I've been working with kids for a long time already. It's been 11 years, I want to say.”

At the end of their walk to school, the elementary students were offered a fist bump and a rice krispie treat. As children headed to class, the adults sat down to debrief, going through the hazards they spotted, and anything that stood out about the walk — positive or negative.

Students had to walk in the street because of the overflowing dumpster. They encountered people sleeping in a truck and someone living behind an upended mattress. A homeless encampment that was previously moved was closer to the route and quite a few children were at home sick, but there were no student behaviors that were a safety concern. The kids were well-behaved and in good spirits, some holding hands with friends or chatting with staff.

“The reason this program has been successful is because it’s what the community wanted,” Davis said.

New programs will begin in the fall semester with training at a handful of schools interested in having their own walking school buses. Every year, more walking school buses will be added along with more robust program support, Bock said.

Having a safe, consistent way to get to school improves student attendance, he said.

“This funding will help improve the life, health and safety for the APS students, and it also has the potential to be transformative for the community and improve community health,” Bock said.

Cathy Cook covers the federal government for the Albuquerque Journal. Reach her via email at ccook@abqjournal.com