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NORTHWEST INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT
Justin, Texas
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Northwest ISD
By the Numbers
NORTHWEST ISD AND DURHAM PARTNER
FOR RAPID ENROLLMENT GROWTH
■Partnership start: 2003
■Student enrollment: 17,800
■Number of buses: 133
L
ike many school districts in Texas, Northwest ISD (NISD) was expanding its
enrollment rapidly and looking for new ways to streamline costs while still
providing great services to its students and families. NISD grew from 5,400 students to
17,800 students within 12 years. With a growing student population, the district needed
to find new ways to accommodate student transportation.
CHALLENGE:
■Number of routes: 106
■Student ridership: 8,200
■Special education routes: 24
Rapid Enrollment Growth and Need for Efficiencies
Because of the rapid growth, the NISD transportation department was having a hard
time keeping up. Additionally, the district had an older bus fleet so breakdowns were
happening more often. The administration and school board were faced with the
decision to either try to solve these problems in-house or seek help externally with a
service provider.
SOLUTION:
Locally Focused Transportation
As Northwest was assessing provider options, McCreary said one thing that sets
Durham apart from other transportation providers is its local focus. “I don’t think of
Durham as a vendor. We are all truly in it for the kids. We have a great relationship
with Durham and the local staff is excellent,” McCreary said.
For NISD, Durham’s long time, proven expertise in transporting students safely and
efficiently made the company an ideal partner for the District.
“Durham’s core business is expertise in transportation. We wanted to draw from their
experience. The daily operations under Durham management is the best,” McCreary
said. “This has been a true partnership.”
“We did the cost analysis and
made the decision to outsource
transportation.”
Dennis McCreary,
Assistant Superintendent,
Northwest ISD
800.950.0485 | durhamschoolservices.com | durhamcharterservices.com
RESULTS:
Cost Savings and Safer Transportation
Outsourcing student transportation to Durham allowed the district to quickly expand the number
of students they transported as the district grew. Because Durham handles the personnel,
payroll, purchasing, etc, NISD did not have to increase its staff and was able to save money,
while still expanding its operations.
Durham believes that technology is an important part of getting students to school safely and
on time. The company installed GPS systems across the fleet. “I’m very impressed with what
GPS can do. If there is a problem with a certain stop, it helps us substantiate where the bus is
located,” McCreary said.
Additionally, the company started a pilot in 2012 for a student tracking system that they hope to
expand to more schools next year. The student tracking system helps monitor when students get
on and off the bus—giving school administrators and parent’s peace of mind.
With Durham’s dedicated team and safety protocol, Northwest ISD was able to meet the
changing transportation needs of the district while also improving the safety of its students.
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800.950.0485 | durhamschoolservices.com | durhamcharterservices.com
“I’m very impressed
with what GPS
can do. If there
is a problem
with a certain
stop, it helps us
substantiate where
the bus is located.”
Dennis McCreary,
Assistant Superintendent,
Northwest ISD