Contest Overview
Contest Rules
Speech Scoring Criteria
Information Resources
Application

 Welcome to the National School Bus
Safety Speech Contest
Where High school students learn about safe transportation
and develop public speaking skills

The National School Bus Safey Speech Contest challenges high school students across the country to speak out about school transportation safety.

According to Willie A. Tarleton, chair of the NAPT National School Bus Safety Speech Contest, "We want teenagers to think seriously about their choice of transportation to and from school. Riding in a yellow school bus may not be the 'cool" thing to do in high school, but it's the safest way to go. Driving yourself, or riding with friends, is nearly a hundred times more dangerous. Teens need to hear the facts from other teens."

"By challenging teenagers to speak out on the subject, we hope they will all come away with a better understanding of transportation safety issues that affect their lives," said Tarleton. "They'll also develop good public speaking skills that will help in college and their future careers."

The contest, which offers prizes sponsored by school bus manufacturer Corbeil Bus and SafeGuard by IMMI, makers of the Student Transportation Add-on Restraint (STAR), is open to all U.S. students in grades 9-12. Participants must conduct research about school buses and other forms of school transportation, and then compose and present a 4-6 minute speech without notes.

According toTarleton, state contests feed a regional competition from which a total of 5 finalists will be selected to compete in the national finals. States will coordinate local and state competitions while NAPT will coordinate the regional and national finals. The national finals will be held in conjunction with the NASDPTS and NAPT annual conferences, which are held in late October each year.

Additional information about the National School Bus Safety Speech Contest is available from NAPT and state directors of pupil transportation. Contact information for each State Director of Pupil Transportation is available at www.nasdpts.org. More information about the speech contest sponsors can be obtained by vising their web sites: Corbeil Bus - www.corbeilbus.com and SafeGuard by IMMI - www.safeguardseats.com

National School Bus Safety Week is celebrated the third week of October each year. Various states are holding speech contests this year and plan to integrate recognition for SBSW Poster Contest and the School Bus Safety Speech Contest participants with the traditional events that encourage safety education and recognize drivers and other transportation personnel. Information about the National School Bus Safety Week Poster Contest is available online at www.napt.org as well as by calling NAPT Headquarters at (800) 989-NAPT.

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National School Bus Safety Speech
Contest Overview

• The National School Bus Safety Speech Contest (NSBSSC) is for students in grades 9-12.

• Each state has the option of participating in the NSBSSC. Each participating state will conduct its own state contest to determine the state winner. Please contact the State Director of Pupil Transportation to determine if that state is participating in the NSBSSC, and if so, how to obtain specific information about the contest(s) in your state/area.

• The State Director, or designate, from each state that is participating in the National Speech Contest shall video tape the state finals and forward the winning speaker's tape to the his/her NAPT Regional Director. The speeches must be recorded in the presence of the State Director of Pupil Transportation and the President of a state pupil transportation association from that state or designates. The video tape of the winning state presentation must be sent to the appropriate NAPT Regional Director no later than September 21, 2007. In addition, three copies of each of the following information must be submitted:
  • The text of the speech; double-spaced on 8-1/2" x 11" paper;
  • The bibliography used in writing the speech;
  • The application form; and
  • The letter from a local civic organization acknowledging the contestant presented his/her speech to that organization

A list of the current NAPT Regional Directors, and the states within each NAPT region, is available on the NAPT website, Board of Directors' link.

• State winners from participating states are eligible to compete in a regional competition. Regional winners are eligible to compete in the National School Bus Safety Speech Contest. The regional winners shall be determined by a panel of judges in each NAPT region based on their review of video tapes of the state winners within that NAPT region. The panel of judges at the regional- and national-level(s) shall consist of five (5) judges. At least two (2) judges shall be a state or local school transportation director; at least two (2) judges shall have a background in speech and/or drama; and one (1) judge shall be from a recognized civic organization or business.

• Each NAPT Regional Director is responsible for providing a copy of the video tape of the winner from that region to Michael Martin, Executive Director of the National Association for Pupil Transportation, not later than September 28, 2007.

• Each region shall have one winner who will compete in the National Finals which will be held during the NAPT/NASDPTS Annual Conference. The regional winners will compete to determine a national champion. The national winner will then have an opportunity to present their winning speech at a general session at the NAPT and NASDPTS conferences.

• Only the participants in the National Finals will receive a monetary award. The total value of available prizes is at least $4,000.00.

• To ensure consistency and equality among the state winners that participate in the regional contests, and the regional winners that compete in the national contest, all state and regional contests shall use the same rules governing the composition and presentation of the speeches. Additionally, the same scoring criteria shall be used. Please refer to the contest rules for more specific information.

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National School Bus Safety Speech
Contest Rules

Composition and Presentation Guidelines

1. All speeches must be on a school bus safety-related theme.
   THE 2007 SPEECH CONTEST THEME IS "TEEN DRIVER: SAFEST ROUTE TO SCHOOL?"
2. The speech must be given without the use of notes or printed materials.
3. The speech manuscript shall be the result of the student's own effort.
4. Each speech must be at least four (4) minutes in length, but not more than six (6) minutes in length. Contestants shall be penalized one (1) point for each ten (10) seconds that the speech deviates from these minimum and maximum time lengths.
5. Contestants shall be required to respond to any questions asked by the judges following the speech.
6. Prior to speaking, each contestant (at the state level) must provide the following items to the contest coordinator:
   --Five (5) copies of the speech, double spaced on 8-1/2" x 11" white paper;
   --Five (5) copies of the bibliography used in writing the speech (it can be attached to the speech itself; and
   --Five (5) copies of the application form to participate in the speech contest (see attached form).
7. In order to be eligible to compete in the regional and national contests, the state winners must present their winning speech to at least one (1) local civic organization prior to the regional contest.

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Scoring Criteria

In order to ensure consistency and equality among the state winners that participate in the regional contests, and the regional winners that compete in the national contest, all state and regional contests shall use the same scoring criteria. Speeches shall be evaluated in each of the following categories:

Max. Points
4
2
5

5
4
2
22

Max. Points
10
6

10
6
32

Did it summarize the information provided?
Did it provide definite closure?
Did it leave the speech on a high note?*
Did the speaker adhere to time guidelines of 4-6 minutes?
Length of speech in time:
TOTAL POINTS

*one point penalty for each ten (10) seconds that the speech deviates from the minimum and maximum time periods.

Max. Points
3
4
3

6
_____ minutes
16

Was the delivery enthusiastic?
Did the speaker have good eye contact?
Were other aspects of nonverbal delivery effective?
Did the speaker use vocal variety & good projection?
Did the speaker present him/herself in a professional manner?

TOTAL POINTS

MAXIMUM TOTAL POINTS

Max. Points
7
6

5

7

5

30

100

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Information Resources

Participants in the National School Bus Safety Speech Contest are required to conduct research and prepare a bibliography of information resources. At a minimum, the list should include five (5) different sources, which may include the following school bus industry publications/newsletters:

School Bus Fleet Magazine
21061 South Western Avenue
Torrance, California 90501
(310) 533-2400
www.schoolbusfleet.com

School Transportation Director
Post Office Box 8548
Silver Spring, Maryland 20907
(301) 279-6782

School Transportation News
Post Office Box 789
Redondo Beach, California 90277
(310) 792-2226
www.stnonline.com

In addition, the following Governmental/Industry Web Sites may also be utilized as sources of information:

www.schoolbusinfo.org (School Bus Information Center)
www.nasdpts.org (National Association of State Directors of Pupil Transportation Services)
www.napt.org (National Association for Pupil Transportation)
www.nhtsa.gov (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration)
www.yellowbuses.org (National School Transportation Association)
www.ntsb.gov (National Transportation Safety Board)

Finally, additional information can be found on the Internet by using a search engine and typing in the word "school bus." Search engines are available on the NAPT website.

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