Frank W. Cyr
| Dr. Frank W. Cyr, PhD | |
|---|---|
| Born |
July 7, 1900 Franklin, Nebraska |
| Died | August 1, 1995 (aged 95) Stamford, New York |
| Education | PhD |
| Alma mater |
University of Nebraska Teachers College, Columbia University |
| Occupation | Author Educator |
| Years active | 1930–1965 |
| Employer | Columbia University Teachers College |
| Notable work | school bus yellow |
| Title | "Father of the Yellow School Bus" |
Frank W. Cyr, PhD (July 7, 1900 – August 1, 1995) was an American educator and author known especially for his contribution to school busing.
As a specialist in rural education, he organized the United States' first national standards conference for school transportation in 1939, starting what became an ongoing cooperative effort by those building and operating school buses. One of the most memorable accomplishments of the conference was a move to develop and standardize a highly visible color for the buses and their markings to help identify them to other motorists. Afterwards, Dr. Cyr became known as the Father of the Yellow School Bus.
Cyr, born July 7, 1900, was a native of Franklin, Nebraska. After high school, Cyr attended Grinnell College and then earned his BA in Education at the University of Nebraska. He became superintendent of schools in Chappell, Nebraska before continuing as a graduate student at Teachers College, Columbia University in New York City), where, by 1930, he had earned his PhD. His dissertation, Responsibility for Rural School Administrators was published by the Teachers College Bureau of Publications, the first of many of his published works.
After earning his doctorate, Cyr taught at Teachers College for over 30 years, retiring in 1965. While working in the education of teachers, he also became involved in studying and improving rural education and school transportation.
In the 1930s, Cyr made a study of school transportation. He learned that students were riding in all kinds of vehicles, including kid hacks, trucks and buses of every imaginable color and condition. One district's buses sported red, white and blue decor, perhaps hoping to instill patriotism in its passengers. A Kansas district transported its students in horse-drawn wheat wagons. School bus manufacturers complained that because there were no national standards, they could not mass-produce the buses, nor make a profit and keep costs down.
In April 1939, Cyr organized a conference at Teachers College, funded by a grant from the Rockefeller Foundation for transportation officials from each of the then 48 states, as well as specialists from school bus manufacturing and paint companies.
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