There are 2,369 students who take the bus to school in School District 8. That’s 2,369 students the school needs to account for, to make sure no one gets left behind.

It’s a responsibility the school system doesn’t take lightly. 

Losing track of a student doesn’t happen often, but manager of operations for SD8, Janet Wall, said even once is more often than they would like. In any case, having a system in place will make relocating students much easier and faster.

Initially, School District 8 was interested in the Zonar program as a way to trace students on buses, in case of possible COVID-19 exposure. If the district knows which bus an infected student rode — and when, where and how long they were on the bus — they would be able to contact exactly which other students were also on the bus at those times.