First Student and the National Safety Council are joining forces to promote safe school bus behavior with the nationwide Safety Dog Bus Tour.
“First Student and the National Safety Council share a common mission to serve as advocates for making the world safer, working to keep safety always front of mind for our employees and the communities we serve,” said First Student President Dennis Maple. “There is a great deal of trust placed in First Student and our drivers. It’s important that we all work together to ensure the safety of our school children, and we’re excited to deliver important safety messages for back-to-school in a fun and memorable way.”
The Safety Dog Bus Tour will stop by seven cities in the U.S. where it will connect with elementary schools and their students. At tour stops, children will not only learn safety tips as they are asked to sign a safety pledge and “Walk the Yellow Carpet.” The kids will also get the chance to meet and take a photo with Safety Dog, the safety mascot for First Student.
The tour will also allow parents to see firsthand how First Student designs their buses to make them as safe as possible.
The Safety Dog Bus Tour will start on Aug. 20 in Schaumburg, Illinois, before continuing on to Cincinnati, Ohio; Wichita, Kansas; Lewisville, Texas; Corona-Norco, California; New Castle, Pennsylvania; and Jericho, New York.
“Like millions of parents across the country, I put my children on a school bus each morning, knowing that they will arrive at the destination safely,” said Deborah Hersman, president and CEO of the National Safety Council. “First Student’s Safety Dog Bus Tour provides parents a more intimate look at the big yellow school bus — the very best option for transporting our most precious cargo.”
Parents can find more information about the tour, including tour dates, times, locations, safety tips, and downloadable activities, at safetydogbustour.com. First Student will also be sharing safety tips and tour updates on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. The National Safety Council will also share updates on Twitter and Facebook.
While the tour is limited to a small number of cities, First Student and the National Safety Council are encouraging parents, teachers, and students to use the hashtag #SafetyDogBusTour to help spread the safety lessons with a much larger audience.
