Alabama School District Installs GPS on Buses

Boaz, Alabama is located in the northeastern quadrant of the state. Incorporated in 1897, the city now boasts a population of more than 9,000 residents. It is located in Marshall County. While in many ways this town exemplifies traditional small-town America, in at least one way it is looking to be ahead of the technological curve. Boaz in the process of joining the U.S. school districts with GPS-equipped school buses.

Known as “The City of Possibilities,” Boaz’s town tends toward a conservative point of view, limiting alcohol sales near schools and encouraging newcomers to visit the town’s many churches. Perhaps this characteristic has its basis in the naming of the town: Boaz is a character in the Old Testament, the husband of Ruth and an ancestor of Jesus Christ.

Although it was originally founded because of the area’s rich agricultural potential, Boaz now offers a diversity of reasons to visit, including outlet shopping in the Historic Downtown area as well as industries such as recycling, automotive parts, carpet yarns, and poultry.

Snead State Community College offers post-high school educational opportunities for residents. Various other offerings also make the town an appealing place for families: a local library, a senior center, a golf course, a movie theater, a campground, and restaurants.

The Boaz City School System’s logo emphasizes the district’s focus on “Expectations, Excellence, Everyday, Everyone.” One way the schools are beefing up their excellence is by installing GPS devices on their 21 school buses. As of August 2013, two buses had been fitted, with plans to fit the other 19 soon.

The GPS tracking devices will allow the administration to keep track of each bus’s location while on its route. The district’s transportation director also emphasized the importance of using the GPS devices to keep buses and their riders safe in the case of dangerous weather situations—allowing officials to warn the drivers to avoid risky situations.

The district is also planning to use the devices to give parents access to information on the exact location of their child’s bus each day, to and from school. For a nominal fee of five dollars each month, parents can keep track of their child’s bus’s location on their home devices—whether a tablet, a cell phone, a laptop, or a home computer.

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Alabama School District Installs GPS on Buses