Texas Transit Association Statewide Training Initiative
TTA is now expanding access to educational resources by launching a Statewide training initiative covering the many obstacles that transit staff face, including funding, procurement, and regulatory compliance. This training opportunity is made possible with a grant through TxDOT.
To administer this program, TTA will work closely with Easterseals, which has over 34 years of experience developing and implementing training programs and workshops for rural, suburban, and urban transit agencies. This training curriculum will be designed and delivered to be relevant to transit providers at various levels of management, accounting, and procurement professionals, front-line supervisors, dispatchers/ call center staff, and drivers. It will incorporate best practices from both the public and the private sector.
All courses, workshops, and webinars, in-person or virtual, are designed to be interactive and participatory. These courses will be offered to Transit agencies in Texas at no cost, but space is limited, so make sure that you and your staff don’t miss out on this great opportunity.
TTA’s Upcoming Courses
These courses are offered to transit agencies in Texas at no cost by grant funding through TxDOT.
Procurement Workshop (In-Person)
Title: Procurement Workshop
Dates/Time: July 15-16, 2024, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Central
Location: Commons Conference Center, 2901 Read Grandberry Trail, Austin, TX 78758
Instructor: Greg Harnett, RLS & Associates
Description: This 2-day workshop will cover the fundamental rules for conducting FTA-funded procurements. Specifically, we will examine the requirements associated with each threshold of procurement (i.e., micro-purchase, small purchase, formal purchase), non-competitive procurements, joint and cooperative procurements, rolling stock procurement and disposition, and procurement of design and construction services. Further, we will discuss the causes of common procurement findings arising from FTA audits, as well as what agencies can do to achieve compliance in these areas.
Title: Effective Communication and Disability Etiquette (Webinar)
Date/Time: July 30, 2024, 10:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. Central
Instructor: Kristi McLaughlin, Easterseals Project Action
Description: This webinar on disability etiquette aims to educate individuals on appropriate behavior and communication with people with disabilities. The webinar covers various topics such as understanding disability, language usage, body language, accessibility, and laws and policies related to accessibility and disability.
Title: Tapping into the Power of Generational Diversity (webinar)
Dates: August 8, 2024
Time: 10:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. Central
Instructor: Kristen Joyner, KJBackpack
Description: Five generations are working in our transit systems, each vastly different from the next, with each person bringing values and characteristics that can be stimulating and confusing. Learn how to lead, challenge and inspire by tapping into unique gifts, setting boundaries for non-negotiables and bridging the gaps all for a more enriching transit work experience.
Title: Hiring, Keeping and Motivating Employees (in-person, 1-day)
Date: August 14, 2024
Time: 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Location: Citibus, Lubbock, TX
Instructors: Kristen Joyner, KJBackpack and Robbie Sarles, RLS & Associates
Description: Transit has been hit hard with declines in ridership, service delivery, and loyal employees. But there is hope! 2024 is showing signs of higher employment rates, fewer demands for increased wages, and improved employee satisfaction. Now that we are beginning to recover nationally, how do we evaluate what we keep and what we transform to take advantage of this changing market locally? What are the unique challenges for transit and your community that need to be addressed?
The session will cover:
- New Transit Work Environment and New Employee Expectations
- Understanding Your Purpose and Retaining Corporate Culture
- Keeping Employee Standards/Policies Current
- What do we need to examine to stay current with our employee’s needs?
- The role of training and employee growth
- Performance and Loyalty: What truly motivates?
- Looking Within: Management & Leadership Training
- Recruitment and Confronting Preconceived Perceptions
- Methods of Recruitment
- Reducing Length of Hiring Process
Title: Customer Service for Transit Professionals (in-person, 1-day)
Date: August 15, 2024
Time: 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Location: Citibus, Lubbock, TX
Instructors: Kristen Joyner, KJBackpack and Robbie Sarles, RLS & Associates
Description: Customer Service Workshop for Transit Professionals. Treating your passengers well is only one aspect of excellent customer service. Customer service encompasses relationships inside the transit agency and extends to the riders and to anyone within the transit agency’s area of influence, even non-riders. This workshop will show managers, supervisors, dispatchers and leads how to translate the important mission of service to our communities into actionable customer service that reaps benefits for the transit agency. The training will include practical discussion, techniques, role play and multimedia.
Key Learning Ideas of this Workshop:
- Excellent customer service is your first line of defense for front line employees.
- On the phone, in the office or on the road – skills and tips to maintain composure under pressure.
- Recognition of the customer service needs of individuals with disabilities and approaches that promise to enhance the experience and accessibility for all.
- Using customer service techniques to promote diversity, equity and inclusion to create a welcoming environment for all.
- Regulatory requirements including Title VI and ADA that set the floor for outreach, accessibility of information in alternative formats and language accessibility plans.
Title: Bus Operator Training (in-person, 1-day)
Date: August 21, 2024
Time: 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Location: Maude Cobb Convention Center – 100 Grand Blvd, Longview, TX 75604
Instructor: Carol Wright Kenderdine, Carol Wright Consulting
Description: When you are on the “front lines” you have to handle many difficult situations. This workshop will prepare you for many of the things you encounter on a day-to-day basis. This interactive, one-day workshop includes customer service: dealing with difficult people (and includes difficult work relationships, too); de-escalation of tense situations; accident and incident scenarios; best practices for communicating with people with disabilities; service animals; ADA reasonable modification (What type of requests are reasonable to accommodate when you are asked to make a change in practice or policy, and what are not!); and a section on frequently asked questions about the ADA (and the answers!!). The class covers personal attitude assessment and handling stress. There will be plenty of time set aside to discuss your unique situations and get your particular questions answered. This class goes well beyond the bus driver training that most of you have already had and takes customer service and the ADA to the next level.
Title: Bus Operator Training (in-person, 1-day)
Date: August 22, 2024
Time: 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Location: Maude Cobb Convention Center – 100 Grand Blvd, Longview, TX 75604
Instructor: Carol Wright Kenderdine, Carol Wright Consulting
Description: When you are on the “front lines” you have to handle many difficult situations. This workshop will prepare you for many of the things you encounter on a day-to-day basis. This interactive, one-day workshop includes customer service: dealing with difficult people (and includes difficult work relationships, too); de-escalation of tense situations; accident and incident scenarios; best practices for communicating with people with disabilities; service animals; ADA reasonable modification (What type of requests are reasonable to accommodate when you are asked to make a change in practice or policy, and what are not!); and a section on frequently asked questions about the ADA (and the answers!!). The class covers personal attitude assessment and handling stress. There will be plenty of time set aside to discuss your unique situations and get your particular questions answered. This class goes well beyond the bus driver training that most of you have already had and takes customer service and the ADA to the next level.
Title: CARES Dispatcher & Call Center Certification (in-person, 2-days)
Date: August 24-25, 2024
Time: 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Location: Waco Transit Administration Building, 301 South 8th Street, Waco, Tx 76701
Instructor: Carol Wright Kenderdine, Carol Wright Consulting
Description: The CARES Dispatcher & Call Center Certification is a comprehensive 2-day course that equips participants with the essential skills needed for success in a dispatching and call center role. Through interactive sessions and practical exercises, participants will learn effective communication techniques, including active listening and de-escalation strategies.
Participants will also gain a solid understanding of dispatching procedures and the use of technology, such as computer-aided dispatch systems and Geographic Information Systems (GIS).
The training will cover customer service best practices, complaint resolution, and the importance of self-care in a demanding environment. By completion of the course, participants will have the tools and confidence to lead and achieve their professional and organizational goals.
Title: ADA: Do I Have to Do That? (in-person, 1-day)
Date: August 26, 2024
Time: 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Location: Waco Transit Administration Building, 301 South 8th Street, Waco, Tx 76701
Instructor: Carol Wright Kenderdine, Carol Wright Consulting
Description: The FTA’s rules regarding the Americans with Disabilities Act sometimes leaves people who work in public transportation with a lot of questions. “Do I have to do that?” is one of the most common questions we hear when people ask us to help them interpret the regulations and to better understand the ADA as it pertains to public transportation. The course covers understanding the rules for Reasonable Modification and its impact on the provision of ADA transportation service. The workshop will help you sort out what you have to do and what you don’t! We will discuss policies and processes for implementation and give examples designed to demonstrate how to make case-by-case decisions about granting reasonable modifications to passengers with disabilities. We will also talk about Reasonable Accommodations that may need to be made when you hire individuals with disabilities or when you need to make accommodations for employees on the job. You will learn what the ADA requires you to do and simple solutions for making determinations on reasonable accommodations. Recent lawsuits will be described to assist participants in knowing what you have to do, and when accommodation requests go too far.
Additional Topics include:
- Understanding the paratransit experience from the customer’s perspective
- Call Wait Times
- Various disability categories and the impact of disability on an individual’s functional ability
- Practical tips on serving customers with disabilities (including sensitivity training and communication techniques)
- Understanding the role of Personal Care Attendants (PCAs)
- Service Animals
- De-escalation techniques
- Providing reasonable assistance to help passengers board, alight, navigate difficult terrain with their wheelchair, and other onboard assistance
- Understanding how the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) intersect with your agency’s policies
There will be plenty of time for group discussion and questions and answers pertinent to your particular agency. Come and find out, “What DO I have to do?”
Recordings of past Webinars
De-Escalation Training – Recording of Webinar
Project Management – Recording of Webinar
Conflict Resolution – Recording of Webinar
Human Resources webinar – Recording of Webinar
Public Engagement webinar – Recording of Webinar
Empowering Mobility Managers to Lead webinar – Recording of Webinar
ADA: Hot Topics webinar – Recording of Webinar
Fundamentals of Project Management: – Recording of Webinar
Microtransit Workshop Part 1: – Recording of Webinar
Microtransit Workshop Part 2: – Recording of Webinar
Planning for Program Sustainability – Recording of Webinar
Marketing Your Transit Program – Recording of Webinar
TxDOT Semi-Annual Transit Operators Business Meeting, January 24, 2024
Managing the Homeless with Crowdsourced Incident Reporting Sponsored by ELERTS – Recording of Webinar, February 1, 2024
ELERTS SEPTA Homeless Vulnerable webinar – Presentation
COTA Homeless and Vulnerable PUBLIC SAFETY PROGRAMS – Presentation
Agencies interested in hosting future training classes can contact Laura@TxTransit.org for details.
- Host agencies are expected to provide the following:
- Training Room with a projector that can accommodate up to 35 individuals classroom style.
- Refreshments and coffee for morning and afternoon breaks.
- Please note that the training location must be in close proximity to dining establishments to allow participants to leave and return within one hour.
- Host agencies may also provide lunch if there are no dining establishments nearby.
- The host agency is encouraged to offer tours of their facility.