The biggest risks around a school bus are often the ones no one sees. Close calls and dangerous passing patterns rarely make headlines, but they shape the daily reality for students on their way to and from school. That hidden risk framed the fourth panel discussion at the 2025 National School Bus Safety Summit.
Convened in Washington, D.C. by BusPatrol alongside the Governors Highway Safety Association and Safe Kids Worldwide, the Summit brought together national, state, and local partners to move from discussion to a clear, actionable roadmap for student safety. This session focused on how public and private agencies work together to move school bus safety from concept to real-world impact, using technology, data, and shared goals to close long-standing visibility gaps around the issue.
Meet the Panel
- Kelly Browning, Ph.D., Executive Director, Impact Teen Drivers
- Karoon Monfared, CEO, BusPatrol
- Anthony Baldoni, Vice President of Strategic Initiatives, Axon
- Fred Humphries, Vice President of US Government Affairs, Microsoft
- Sharon Bryson, Director, Delaware Highway Safety Office
Moderator Dr. Kelly Browning of Impact Teen Drivers and Sharon Bryson of the Delaware Highway Safety Office grounded the conversation in the human cost of inaction, sharing accounts of preventable tragedies that continue to carry what they described as an “invisible weight.” For many states, Bryson noted, limited budgets make it impossible to build advanced safety infrastructure alone, making public/private partnerships not just valuable but essential.
Panelists agreed that successful collaborations begin with a shared mission, not a specific proposed solution. Leading with student safety keeps innovation grounded in what each community actually needs, rather than applying a one-size-fits-all model.
Predictive data emerged as a defining opportunity. When communities can see where illegal passings and close calls are happening most often, they can respond earlier and focus efforts where they will have the greatest impact.
“Technology must serve as a lantern to illuminate the millions of anonymous risks taken around school buses each year, transforming the stop arm from a suggestion into an undeniable command.” — Karoon Monfared, CEO, BusPatrol
Download the Action Plan: A National Blueprint for School Bus Safety
What came out of the National School Bus Safety Summit is a clear path forward. The National School Bus Safety Action Plan, developed in partnership by the Governors Highway Safety Association and BusPatrol, equips decision-makers with the data, strategies, and policy framework to effectively deploy programs, strengthen laws, and change driver behavior.