A new Puma bus has driven onto campus, crucial in carrying teams, clubs, and classes to destinations new and old.

“We picked [the new Puma Bus] up [Sept. 8],” principal Dan Serrano said. The women’s golf team and the self-contained class have been using the bus for the past three weeks for matches, tournaments, and class activities.

“It’s been needed. There’s other programs that need to get places” Serrano said, “That’s how we’re going to transport them.” Several groups have needed to use one of the two previous buses, but were unable because so many wished to use them.

“This is the first year in nine years that we’ve been able to get off campus. The bus is a huge huge gift to us,” said Karen Banaszek, teacher and driver for the self-contained students. The special education students travel to nearby grocery stores using a community based instruction idea. They use the food to learn to cook a variety of meals and help prepare them for post-high-school life. The self-contained class is not the only group that needs to use one of the buses.

There are several teams that cannot practice on campus and must use one of the Puma Buses to get there. “The furthest we’ve ever gone is a 45 minute drive, the closest is 10-15,” said Dakotah Kreil, a member of the women’s golf team, “We only use the bus on away matches. Typically we’ll only use the bus to drive further away.” The women’s golf team is one of the main groups using the new bus for practice, matches, and tournaments.

The Puma Buses have been known to be called the Party Buses. Kreil states “we’ve always wanted an aux cord to attach to the bus so we could have our own party.” Students are able to enjoy their ride rather than lying across empty benches in a quiet, hot, regular size bus.

The Puma Buses have aided in the improvement of team spirit and bonding. “It’s a really good environment to create team memories which we all appreciate a lot,” Kreil said. Instead of students being crammed into a small van or spread out in a regular bus, students have their own personal space. They can interact with their fellow teammates and classmates as the drive brings them closer to their destination, team bonding and memories.