FLORENTINA "FLO" LOPEZ
VP FOR PARAPROFESSIONAL & SCHOOL RELATED PERSONNEL (PSRP)
My name is Florentina Lopez, and I have been a school bus driver for 39 years. I have the honor of being a member with our Local #4129 Albuquerque Federation of Classified Professionals. I am the site leader for bus drivers/attendants at the Transportation Mechanical Center with Albuquerque Public Schools. I am also the Vice President of Paraprofessional & School Related Personnel, for AFT New Mexico.
I started working with school bus companies when I was 19 years old. I started off as a school bus attendant. Once the owner of the bus company found out I had a CDL driver’s license to drive a fire truck he asked me to drive a school bus. I then upgraded my CDL with a school bus and passenger endorsement.
Being able to be a school bus driver was an honor to me. The families trusted me in keeping their kids safe. I was able to get to know a lot of kids from the ages of 3-18 years old. A school bus driver is the first person the kids see after leaving their house and last person they see before they get home. My Goal in being a good school bus driver is making sure I come to work with a positive attitude and driving to the best of my ability to keep the kids safe. Driving a school bus is a big responsibility. We also teach the kids to respect others, how to sit in a school bus for their safety and others around them.
Not only am I a school bus driver, I am also the Union Site Rep Leader for AFCP at the Albuquerque Public Schools transportation bus company. Working at a company that has over 250 bus drivers/attendants keeps us union reps busy. Being the lead site rep comes with a lot of responsibilities. I wanted to continue to learn in being a stronger leader. I decided to run for an officer position with the Union. Now I have taken on the role of being the Vice President of Paraprofessional & School Related Personnel for the state of New Mexico. I have the privilege of working with all my co-officers to make this a stronger Union.