Sumter County schools donate buses to youth center

By Camille Acevedo

Sumter County students are wrapping up their first couple weeks of school.

They were the last central Florida district to return to the classroom. As after school programs roll out, it just got a lot easier for one program to offer transportation. 

The school district donated two buses to the Sumter County Youth Center so the center can provide its own transportation and there can be more room on the buses to take other children. 

The center typically has over 200 students each year. Originally, the district would drop off students and the center would pick up the rest across seven schools in the county.

Sumter County Youth Center Executive Director Della Boushley says they currently have two buses that are old. These new ones will provide safer transportation and help the cause. She says there is a great need to provide reliable transportation to students. Often times students living in Lake Panasoffkee and Webster lose out on after school services because of the lack of transportation.

“I really don’t want to see any students go home alone,” Boushley says. “This world is not what it used to be and you don’t want to worry about your child being home alone.” 

The donation comes after the growth in the county. Sumter County Schools Superintendent Logan Brown says that they’re the highest growing district in the state. This year they’re expecting to transport over 63% of the student body. So about 4,000 students will be relying on the school bus.

“With our numbers increasing we were able to work with the youth center and donate buses that way we can help everyone across the board, students, community and transportation,” Sumter County Schools Transportation Coordinator Jason Mendoza says.

With the donation, the school district has more room to transport students who don’t go to any after school programs. 

“Its become more difficult to support the day care as we have done in the past, so thinking outside the box what better way to support the day care than to donate buses to them,” Mendoza says. “This makes it easier for them to provide their own transportation.”

Mendoza says they hope to be able to provide the center and other day cares with additional buses as the community grows.

https://mynews13.com/fl/orlando/news/2025/08/20/sumter-county-schools-youth-center-buses-