The Board of Education has appointed Walter Engel as supervisor of transportation for the Chatham Central School District, effective May 5, 2025. As supervisor, Mr. Engel will oversee the operations, staffing, and maintenance of the District’s transportation department. He brings a background in transportation, fleet maintenance, and bus driving to his new leadership position. Most recently, he was a head mechanic with the District and has worked for our transportation department the past nine years. He’s also known for Springer, Sprocket, and Spring Worm, creatures he sculpted from spare bus parts that greet students when they arrive at school and head home each day on our buses.
“I look forward to working with the bus drivers to figure out ways to ensure efficiency and safety on the routes.They are the ones that drive the same route daily and they often have ideas on what might make the most sense,” Engel said.
Along with being a familiar face in our transportation department, he has extensive knowledge of the roadways and geography of the communities found within the Chatham Central School District. Engel is a life-long resident of the District, a graduate of Chatham High School, and a long-time leader in our community who currently serves as the deputy supervisor for the Town of Ghent and the chief of Ghent Volunteer Fire Company No. 1.
“I really enjoyed my nine years working on the buses with two of the best in the business,” Engel said, referring to Chatham’s other bus mechanics, William Cooley and Robert Rafferty. “It's a bit outside of my comfort zone to be going from turning wrenches to the office work aspect of the new position but I certainly look forward to the challenge.”
Engel says his goals are to focus on efficiency and meet the challenges posed by driver shortages and increasing state mandates. In the immediate future, he will be learning the ropes with our interim transportation supervisor, Steve Oleynek, who temporarily took over the department following the resignation of the past supervisor of transportation, Josh Loeffler, in March.
“The department will be seeking individuals that might be good candidates for drivers. We have driver trainers and seasoned employees that can answer any question you might have if you have ever considered driving for the school, and we are seeking a replacement mechanic as well.” he added.