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Fairfax County Public Schools transportation employees put their driving knowledge and safety skills to the test during the 2026 Bus Roadeo at the Stonecroft Transportation Center.

The annual event combined a written exam with driving and safety challenges modeled on situations employees encounter while transporting students. Competitors tackled parallel parking, backing maneuvers, student-loading procedures and pre-trip inspections.

Sandy O’Grady of Area 4 won the Big Bus division for standard Type C buses. Area 4 floater Gauge Campbell placed second, while Area 3 floater Min Kang finished third.

In the Small Bus division for lift-equipped, special-needs Type C buses, Natasha Watford-Sturgis of Area 2 took first place. Il Seon Kim of Area 4 finished second, followed by Lucia Valentino of Area 1 in third.

O’Grady and Watford-Sturgis will represent FCPS at the Region IV School Bus Roadeo in Dumfries, Virginia. They are also scheduled to compete in the Virginia State Bus Roadeo in May.

Transportation operations managers Jessica Carroll and Lisa Ellis planned the event with transportation instructor Peter Gado. Employees and their families gathered to support the competitors and connect with colleagues from across the school division.

Carroll, who is marking 10 years with FCPS, said the Roadeo provides important team-building opportunities for transportation employees who often spend much of the day working alone aboard buses. She said the combination of competition and social interaction advances the department’s safety mission.

Ellis, a 20-year FCPS employee who began as a driver, said she enjoyed interacting with students and creating a positive atmosphere while providing safe transportation. In her current leadership role, she focuses on teaching colleagues, helping them advance and solving operational problems.

Gado has worked for FCPS for 11 years. He said he valued the chance to positively influence children when he was a driver and now finds satisfaction in watching new drivers master skills they previously found difficult.

Those skills were central to the Roadeo, which was designed to reinforce safe practices and highlight the precision required of school bus drivers and attendants on every route.