Pender County Board of Education approves bus driver bonuses
PENDER COUNTY, NC (WWAY) –The Pender County Board of Education made a significant decision by unanimously approving a bonus for bus drivers.
The district will reward 95 active bus drivers with an $850 bonus. Additionally, substitute drivers who have worked more than 12 hours will receive $425.
In total, the board allocates over $86,000 from the district’s remaining ESSER funds, which must be spent by the end of the month. ESSER, or “Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief,” represents federal money distributed during the pandemic.
Superintendent Dr. Brad Breedlove emphasized the importance of this initiative, stating, “We really want to use these remaining dollars to recognize our bus drivers that have been with us for so many years and never blink when it comes to helping out our district and helping out our students getting them to and from school safely.”
The bonuses will be paid out on Monday.
In addition, Pender County Schools encourages more individuals to apply to become bus drivers, seeking to expand their team for the benefit of the community.
More information on how to apply can be found on the transportation tab of their website.
Russ Gurganus is the district’s new Chief Operations Officer (Photo: Pender County Schools)
Russ Gurganus will soon take over as the district’s new Chief Operations Officer, joining the district with extensive experience in construction management and school operations.
Most recently, he served as a Project Manager at T.A. Loving Company, where he led multi-million-dollar projects, overseeing all aspects from pre-construction to completion. Prior to that, Gurganus worked with Brady Trane as a Project Manager and Estimator, specializing in large commercial HVAC projects.
Gurganus also served in public education. He was the Director of Facilities for Dare County Schools and Director of Maintenance, Safety, Security, and Compliance for Beaufort County Schools. He holds an Associate’s Degree in Business Administration from Beaufort County Community College.
Gurganus served as a Trooper with the North Carolina State Highway Patrol and was deployed to Iraq with the North Carolina Army National Guard during Operation Iraqi Freedom.
