Warren County Public Schools will hold a job fair Aug. 27 at Warren Central High School in hopes of filling vacancies in various areas of employment.

Positions advertised include teachers, cafeteria and maintenance workers, custodians, instructional aides, secretaries and bus drivers.

“It doesn’t matter to us if you’re a bus driver, a cafeteria worker, a custodian, a receptionist, a teacher – it doesn’t matter. We’re all teachers and young people need good role models,” said James Francis, WCPS’ director of human resources.

Chip Jenkins, WCPS’ director of transportation, confirmed the need for more bus drivers. There are currently 20 open routes, down from 23 in July.

“We need 20 route drivers and 20 full-time substitute drivers,” Jenkins said via email.

To deal with the shortage, drivers have started doing “double runs” to pick up more students. Jenkins said they have “adjusted well to the double runs and they like the new bus stops.”

WCPS is offering a $500 sign-on bonus for drivers without previous experience and a $2,500 bonus for applicants with a commercial driver’s license. A $500 referral bonus for current WCPS employees is also available.

Francis said another area of need is in support staff. There are currently 39 such openings on the district’s jobs website, 19 of them for special education instruction assistants and eight for English as a second language instructional assistants.

“We’ve done really, really well, but those are some areas that would be of greatest need,” Francis said.

There are 15 open teaching positions spread across the elementary, middle and high school levels.

Francis said this isn’t an unusual amount of vacancies for the district and that the openings are “pretty scattered” without one school needing disproportionate help.

“It’s pretty typical, I don’t think that it’s anything out of the ordinary,” Francis said. “What’s different is citizens are wanting to work and they have many more options than they’ve had in the past.”

Francis, a product of public schooling, said there is “no greater calling” than working with young people to shape the future of Bowling Green, Warren County and the country at large.

“I’m a firm believer that public education is the greatest equalizer in the world,” Francis said. His father and mother left school in the fourth and ninth grade, respectively, and his father passed away without ever learning how to read.

“Me, fast-forward a generation and I’ve been blessed to get my bachelor’s, master’s and doctorate,” Francis said. “I give credit to public school, the people like the cafeteria workers who fed me when I had no money, the custodian that would talk to me when no one else would. … It’s a great place to inspire young people.”

The job fair will run from 9 a.m. to noon Aug. 27. Open positions can be found at warrencountyschools.org.