Working -- Kim Large

Story by Christine Carrillo

SHE IS:

Aiding students on their road to education

REVISITING AN OLD INTEREST

At 42, Kim Large has spent most of her adult life as a stay-at-home

mother to her three sons while working on a small sewing business from

home. But four years ago, she adopted another title: Newport-Mesa Unified

School District bus driver. She has enjoyed the addition ever since.

With her sons all older than 14 now, Large said she wanted to do more.

“I wanted to work with the kids,” Large said. “I always wanted to be a

schoolteacher, but I kind of cut myself short.”

Even though Large held that outlook initially, she now understands the

full import of her job.

“The bus driver is often the first person [the students] see in the

morning,” she said. “I wanted to have a smile on my face and help start

their day off right.”

Her relationships with the students she serves is one of the most

important aspects of her job and one, she believes, is often overlooked

by the public.

“We are definitely stereotyped, and I think [the job] gets a bum

wrap,” Large said. “I think people underestimate the job description.”

DRIVING AMID MADNESS

Having to face the wrath of drivers filled with road rage because of

the size and slow speed of the 35-foot yellow school bus, Large said

people need to understand that her responsibilities don’t end with

driving students to and fro. More importantly, they include the safety of

the 80 children on board and even the safety of the children getting on

and off the bus.

In addition, she must maintain a complete knowledge of the bus she

drives and be constantly aware of the road conditions on her route, which

usually changes every year. Large must also renew her certificates every

five years.

After getting her commercial license, along with her air brakes and

passenger endorsements, Large has become one of the bus drivers within

the district with no restrictions. She is qualified to drive every bus

the district has.

Now driving the older manual transmission with double clutch bus,

Large admits that despite its higher demands on her physically, it’s her

favorite bus.

However, as it is the biggest of the school buses, Large said learning

the names of all her students at the beginning of every school year is

the hardest part of the job.

CATCHING UP ON READING

And with that as the hardest, the downtime during class field trips

throughout the year remains the easiest.

“I never had a chance to read until I became a bus driver,” Large

said. “Now, I get to catch up on all the great novels that I never got to

read.”

Although Large has plenty of time to pursue personal goals while on

the job, she never forgets the importance of what she does.

“It’s transporting kids to and from school,” she said. “If we weren’t

there to do it, a lot of these kids wouldn’t get there.”