(Gore, WV) It’s 7:30 am on a Friday morning, and school bus driver Christal Collins takes a moment to welcome a coworker with a hug before submitting a stack of paperwork to the transportation office. She makes her rounds greeting the rest of the office staff before getting on with her day now that her morning route is finished. She seems so at home on the bus lot that you’d never guess she didn’t earn her CDL until she was thirty-five years old—a milestone she achieved while raising four kids as a single mom.
Before driving a school bus, Christal completed a teaching assistant program and worked with students inside the classroom. One day the school administration mentioned that a bus driver had quit, and they were left scrambling to find a replacement. Christal was invited to apply for the opening and was excited to learn the school system would pay for her CDL. After a few weeks of studying and supervised driving, she was ready to hit the road as a state-certified school bus driver.
As a mother, Christal appreciates the flexibility a school bus driver’s schedule affords her. Her kids ride to and from school with her on the bus in the morning and afternoon, and she is always off work for things like snow days and summer break which eliminates the cost and inconvenience of childcare. In addition, Christal has several free hours between morning and afternoon runs to juggle errands and appointments while her children are in school. Those free hours were especially helpful when she was diagnosed with cervical cancer last spring and had to make frequent trips to doctors’ offices. She was able to keep up with treatments without missing much work, and thankfully, her cancer has been in remission since June 2024.
In addition to driving a school bus, Christal serves her community as a firefighter and an EMT—a decision inspired by her fire chief father. She encourages other women to serve as first responders as well but offers a warning: be ready to accept the hard realities of the role. She goes on to explain, “It’s a challenge because some of the things you see can be very traumatic,” but overall, it’s worthwhile for those who want to give back to their community. To break into the field, Christal recommends contacting your local fire department for help securing free or low-cost training. She also notes many technical centers provide training but typically charge students for classes.
Requirements to become an EMT or firefighter are listed on the West Virginia Public Service Training website. For example, an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) must complete a 155-hour program which includes clinical time, practical skills testing, and a passing score on the National Registry exam, and there is a similar role—Emergency Medical Responder (EMR)—requiring only 72 hours of training plus a passing score on the knowledge test. On the other hand, Fire Service covers a variety of roles like the Fire Fighter 1 class requiring 120 hours of training, transportation-based posts like Driver Operator-Aerial, and other specialized positions with unique sets of requisites.
Christal recommends services like WV Women Work’s PartnerUp mentorship program for women like her who want to follow a nontraditional path. She says it’s helpful to have someone connect job seekers and volunteers with the right resources. Most of all, it’s nice to have someone give you that push when you’re struggling to move forward, and the sooner a person meets their goals, the sooner they can start giving back to their community—just like Christal.
Interview conducted, transcribed, and written by Marlynda Arnett, Program Innovation Leader for West Virginia Women Work.
