Beloved Cobb bus driver of 40 years reflects on career

COBB COUNTY, Ga. — A Cobb County school bus driver who’s been behind the wheel for about 40 years is sharing her story.

Claudette Petsch, called “Ms. Claudette” by the students who ride her buses, said she’s not only a bus driver, but comes from a line of bus drivers in Cobb County.

“I’m a multi-generational bus driver,” Petsch said.

Cobb County School District officials said Petsch has driven for the same three schools her entire career: Sedalia Park Elementary School, East Cobb Middle School and Wheeler High School.

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From students’ first day of kindergarten to their last day of school before they graduate, CCSD said Petsch is always welcoming, and has even reassured former riders when their own children hop on her bus for the first time.

Petsch said she first started driving buses so she could buy a horse for her daughter, but her career has become much more than that for the last four decades.

“I love the kids. I have the best kids ever,” she said. “My parents love me, and the kids love me, and I love them.”

Petsch is not only a bus driver, she’s a mother to Cobb County graduates and the grandmother of students currently learning in Cobb County schools. She said that she pays attention to her students, listens and tells them that if they have a problem, they can always come to her.

“I think it makes a difference because my parents, my elementary parents, have told me that I’m their hero,” Petsch said.

In addition to sharing Petsch’s story for the story it is, the Cobb County School District is encouraging anyone interested in driving for the district to connect with Petsch or learn more about what being a driver has to offer, online.

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