Appleton Area School District School Bus Driver Guide
No CDL required. Lamers Bus Lines runs Appleton's routes and pays you while you earn your license.
🎁 Limited-time: + free Wisconsin CDL Passenger & School Bus study guide
Appleton Area School District is the sixth-largest district in Wisconsin, enrolling roughly 14,994 students across 35 schools in Outagamie County. The district does not run its own buses. All of its yellow-bus service is contracted to Lamers Bus Lines, a family-owned company based in Green Bay since 1944. Lamers' Fox Cities operation has said it needs about 150 drivers from one school year to the next, and a tornado destroyed its Menasha terminal, so the company is operating from its Freedom terminal while it rebuilds.
That means you apply to Lamers, not to the district, and Lamers hires people with no CDL. The company advertises paid CDL training with experienced trainers, with no professional driving experience required. Lamers has not published the training wage, the program length, or who pays the CDL testing fees. This page covers the real Appleton process, what to confirm, and what the job pays.
Appleton Area School District at a glance
The essentials, pulled from official sources. The full pay tables, the exact application walkthrough, and the school calendar are in the guide.
How to become a School Bus Driver in Appleton
The path in order. The guide expands every step with the exact forms, links, and figures for Appleton Area School District.
Confirm you qualify before you apply
Wisconsin sets 18 as the minimum age and 70 as the maximum for the school bus endorsement, with no state minimum for years of driving experience. Lamers sets its own standard, so confirm it when you apply. You need a driving record that meets the company's safe-driver standards. A high school diploma or GED is preferred, not required.
Apply to Lamers Bus Lines, not the district
Appleton Area School District employs no bus drivers. Go to golamers.com/careers and search the part-time listing "School Bus Driver Appleton." Positions stay open until filled. Complete the full application and certify your driving history accurately.
Interview with the contractor
Call Lamers at 920-832-8800 or the Menasha terminal at 920-687-2671, which serves Appleton and four other districts. The Menasha building at 1825 Novak Drive was destroyed in the tornado, so confirm where in-person visits are happening before you go.
Clear the post-offer screenings
After a conditional offer you complete the Wisconsin Department of Justice criminal-history search for the school bus endorsement along with the MV3740 self-certification, a DOT 5-panel drug screen, and a DOT physical with a Medical Examiner's Certificate. Wisconsin also requires its own annual school bus driver physical, including 20/40 vision in each eye and a 70-degree field of vision. Who pays these costs is not published.
Earn your CDL through paid contractor training
You need a Class B CDL with Passenger (P) and School Bus (S) endorsements. Lamers states it pays you while you earn the license, with experienced trainers guiding you. The company employs state-certified CDL examiners and a driver training simulator, and its Fox Cities terminal has cited about 3 weeks from hire to the road with a CDL. Confirm the current schedule and whether CDL testing fees come out of your pocket.
Ride with a trainer, then drive your route
New drivers ride with experienced trainers until they know their route, then drive solo. The work follows the school calendar, with summers and school breaks off. Evening and weekend charter runs are available for extra pay on your own schedule.
What's in the full Appleton Area School District guide
35+ pages, twelve chapters, written in plain English — everything above in full detail, plus the parts that change year to year.
Right now, includes a free Wisconsin CDL Passenger & School Bus endorsement study guide — the exact material on the two written tests, so you pass the first time. Bundled with your Appleton Area School District guide at no extra cost, for a limited time.
The real pay tables
Every step of the Appleton Area School District pay scale, benefits, and the split-shift schedule — the numbers that decide if this fits your life.
The application, walked through
Exactly what to submit and which documents to attach, so you are not knocked out on a technicality.
The interview
The three things every interviewer is really asking, and what to highlight. (Free in the sample.)
Screenings & paid CDL training
Every screening after your offer, who pays for what, and how you are trained toward your CDL.
The school calendar
This year's Appleton Area School District calendar — work days, holidays, and breaks — so you know your real schedule.
Managing a bus full of kids
The passenger-management techniques veteran drivers swear by. (Also free in the sample.)
See inside before you buy
A few real pages from the manual — the interview and passenger-management chapters — so you can judge the quality yourself.
Appleton Area School District bus driver questions
Who hires School Bus Drivers in Appleton, and do I need a CDL?
Lamers Bus Lines holds the contract for all of Appleton Area School District's bus service, so Lamers hires, trains and pays you, not the district. You do not need a CDL to apply. Lamers advertises paid CDL training with no professional driving experience required, and drivers are Lamers employees rather than district staff.
How much do School Bus Drivers make in Appleton?
Lamers' Fox Cities operation has said hourly pay starts in the low $20s, and the current Appleton listing does not print a dollar figure, so ask for the exact rate when you apply. The work is part-time and flexible, typically about 2 hours in the morning and 2 in the afternoon. The training wage and a guaranteed daily minimum are not published.
Does Lamers offer a sign-on bonus or benefits?
No. Lamers states it does not offer new-hire bonuses as company policy. The company advertises a monthly Safety and Attendance Bonus for drivers who show up and drive safely, though the 2026 amount is unconfirmed. Benefits include a 401(k), health insurance with eligibility requirements, and a Child Ride-Along Program. Contractor drivers are not covered by the Wisconsin Retirement System.
What's the free CDL study guide?
For a limited time, every district guide comes bundled with a free study guide for your state's CDL Passenger and School Bus endorsements — the two written tests you'll take. It covers exactly what's on those tests so you can pass the first time, at no extra cost.
Is this an official guide from the School District?
No. It is an independent preparation guide, not affiliated with or endorsed by any School District. It organizes the public information into one clear manual so you do not have to dig for it.
How do I get the guide after I pay?
Instantly. Checkout takes about a minute, then you get a download link on the screen and by email. It is a PDF you can open on any phone, tablet, or computer and keep.
Get hired in Appleton Area School District.
The whole hiring process in one guide — pay, forms, contacts, and the calendar, all in order.