~Please note our new location is The DESMOND HOTEL - 660 Albany Shaker Road, Albany, NY~

Winter Workshop 2026

Schedule of Events

Wednesday, February 18, 2026

Pre-Conference Workshops

7:30 AM – Registration – Fort Orange Courtyard

8:00 – 12:00 Noon - Town Hall

NYS DMV Certified Examiner 19-A Refresher

John Spacht – NYAPT President-Elect

Transportation Director at Southwestern Schools, Jamestown City Schools, and Frewsburg Schools

1:00 – 5:00 PM - Town Hall

NAPT PDS Course #604-Prioritizing & Evaluating Operational Safety

David Christopher - NYAPT Executive Director

This four-hour course explains and explores “safety” in essential areas of your operations, such as staffing, routing and scheduling, student management and training, vehicle maintenance and customer service. 

8:00 – 5:00 PM - High Street Ballroom

NHTSA Child Passenger Safety Restraint Systems on School Buses Training

Conducted and sponsored by the Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee

Instructors: Kecia Healy - Lead Instructor - Traffic Safety Educator, Orange County and Course Assistants: Louisa Boehlert Vaughan, Jacky Sheehy & Shannan Napolitano

This course teaches drivers and monitors how to safely install and use specialized car seats, booster seats and safety vests for transporting pre-school children and children with disabilities.

4:00 – 6:00 PM- Exhibitor Set Up- Fort Orange Courtyard

Thursday, February 19, 2026

7:00 – 5:00 PM – Registration

7:00 – 8:00 AM- Exhibitor Set Up – Fort Orange Courtyard

8:00 – 8:30 - Coffee and Connect with Industry Partners – Fort Orange Courtyard

8:30 - Opening Session & Welcome –King Street Ballroom - Marc Medina – NYAPT President

9:00 – 10:30 Keynote Address – King Street Ballroom: Tom Murphy and Rick Yarosh from “Sweethearts and Heroes” will deliver an impactful keynote presentation that will inspire attendees with a message of empathy, empowerment  and actionable hope  to build a positive culture within your operation.  Tom and Rich have presented at schools and businesses across the country, including the U.S Naval Academy, and bring their message to NYAPT at Winter Workshop 2026.

10:30 – 11:00 Break – Visit our Industry Partners - Fort Orange Courtyard - Sponsored by RATSA

11:00 – 12:00 New York State Department of Transportation Update - King Street Ballroom - Marc Berger, Director, Passenger Safety Bureau - Sponsored by Leonard Bus Sales, Inc. 

12:00 Lunch – King Street Ballroom - Sponsored by BusRight

1:00 – 2:00 Breakout Session

Shared Services Panel Discussion – Fort Orange 5 - John Spacht, Kristin Sercu, Mike Sweeney & Marc Medina

Moderator – Nicole Dolce

This panel of experienced Transportation Directors involved in shared services will discuss their experiences managing shared-service operations and offer candid advice if you are considering a shared transportation arrangement.  This is a timely workshop as SED is promoting shared service arrangements involving multiple school districts. 

SED School Transportation Requirements and Documentation - High Street Ballroom

Maria Caroccia - PTSI & NYSED Master Instructor

Frank Klein - Director of Safety Training and Operations, STS, Inc. & NYSED Master Instructor

This session repeats and updates the Summer Conference 2025 presentation, with a focus on SED requirements and compliance documentation for newcomers to the industry.

McKinney Vento - Fort Orange 9 - Sponsored by Wayne Fingerlakes Chapter of NYAPT

Jamie Reinke - Transportation Director, Freeport School District

Ted Nugent - Transportation Director, Coxsackie-Athens Central School District

Attend this session to learn about McKinney Vento from an operations standpoint.

Breaking the Conflict Cycle – Town Hall - Sponsored by Wayne Fingerlakes Chapter of NYAPT

David Richardson – Executive Director of Student Operations - Greece Central School District

Breaking the conflict cycle requires intention and the development of the skills to do so.  Attend this session to learn from a school transportation leader who has trained his staff, leading to positive outcomes.

Building a Better Bus Driver – Fort Orange 7  - Dan Proctor - Driver Trainer – Genesee Valley BOCES

Attend this session to learn how a transportation leader improves bus driver performance through better leadership—a great workshop for new transportation leaders.

2:00 – 3:00 – Break – Visit our Industry Partners - Fort Orange Courtyard- Sponsored by Goosetown Communications

3:00 – 4:00 Breakout Sessions – Repeat of 1:00 Sessions.

4:00 – 5:00 – Leadership Development and Certification program informational meeting- Fort Orange 5

LDCI participants are encouraged to attend; all attendees are welcome. We will share an important update on the program at this gathering.

6:00 – 10:00 Scholarship Event/Dinner – King Street Ballroom

Friday, February 20, 2026

7:00 AM – Registration – Fort Orange Courtyard

7:30 AM Breakfast – King Street Ballroom - Sponsored by Transfinder

8:30 – 9:00 Truckers Against Trafficking – King Street Ballroom - Nicole Consiglio – Safe Harbor Coordinator- Albany County

NYAPT is a partner and supporter of Truckers Against Trafficking. This session will explain what you can do to help address human trafficking. 

9:00-10:00 Break – Visit our Industry Partners - Fort Orange Courtyard

10:00 – 11:00 – Susan Shutrump – King Street Ballroom - SPED Update 

Susan is a national speaker on special education transportation. She will provide an overview of SPED transportation regulations and current trends affecting school transportation services.

11:00 – 12:00 – SED/NYSERDA Roundtable on Zero Emission Bus Transition - Update - King Street Ballroom

David Elliott – NYSED, Coordinator Education Aid Services

NYSERDA – Alok Disa, Clean Transportation Senior Advisor

12:00 PM Closing Remarks & Send Off - King Street Ballroom Marc Medina – NYAPT President

Thank you To Our Sponsors!

Rochester Area Transportation Supervisor Association

Nassau NYAPT

Lower Hudson NYAPT

Wayne Fingerlakes NYAPT

Leonard Bus Sales, Inc.

Transfinder

BusRight

Goosetown Communications

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