Join me at NRTAPs October Tribal & Rural Transit Mini-Training Conference!

National RTAP is providing two-and-a-half (2.5) days of tribal and rural transit training with three tracks: grant writing, driver and PASS securement training, and FTA drug and alcohol training. On Days 1 and 2, attendees can choose either the two-day Grant Writing Track or the Driver and PASS Securement Training Track. Registrants opting to take the Driver and PASS Securement Training will attend morning “Customer Service,” “Dealing with Difficult Passenger,” and Defensive Driving” breakout sessions on Days 1 and 2, and will need to register for their choice of either the Day 1 or Day 2 afternoon offering of Community Transportation Association of America (CTAA) PASS securement training. Day 3, all registrants can attend the half-day FTA Drug & Alcohol: Regulatory Updates, Issues and Requirements training.

Ms. Michia Casebier, M.G. Tech-Writing, LLC President/Multimodal Transportation Planner, has funded nearly $26 million dollars in grants; including, but not limited to, an FY14 Federal Transit Authority Tribal Transit Program capital grant for Craig Tribal Association’s transit program startup. Casebier wrote Tribal Transportation Safety Plans for six Alaska Native Villages, three New Mexico pueblos, and has funded $1,661,205.00 in FY16, FY17-18, FY20, and FY24 in Tribal Transportation Program Safety Fund (TTPSF) grants, which were based on Tribal Transportation Safety Plans written by MGT.

Michia has been an NRTAP training facilitator since 2019, and provided a two-day grant writing workshop for the Rhode Island Local Transportation Assistance Program in mid-May 2026.

Mr. John Filippone is the Principal for Filippone Consulting, LLC in Colorado. Now semi-retired, John was involved in rural and resort transit for over 40 years (29+ at Roaring Fork Transportation Authority, Aspen C0), starting as a part-time operator and working through the ranks as a trainer, Lead Driver, Supervisor, Dispatcher, Scheduler, Training Supervisor to Safety and Training Manager for a 300+ staff rural/resort transit agency. John served on the Colorado Rural Transit Assistance Program advisory committee for over 15 years, and is a past Chairman of the National RTAP Review Board. He has certificates in Safety, Security, Training and Supervision from both the Transportation Safety Institute (TSI) and CTAA, as well as a 30-hour OSHA card for General Industry. He is a former certified instructor for Defensive Driving (National Safety Council Defensive Driving Course and Smith System), and is currently a certified PASS Instructor. John is also the developer of Colorado Association of Transit Agencies' Defensive Driving for Transit Operators Training Certificate (DDTOC) program, including the trainer and trainee manuals. This certificate program was designed specifically for transit operators everywhere.

Ms. Jennifer Gissel is a Policy Analyst at the Volpe Center, part of the U.S. Department of Transportation, in Cambridge, MA. At Volpe, she is valued for her skills in evaluation and research, including designing data collection instruments, qualitative data collection and analysis, and communications and reporting. She supports the FTA Drug and Alcohol Program by coordinating, moderating, and presenting trainings, contributing articles to the TSO Spotlight Newsletter, and providing regulatory guidance via the hotline. Ms. Gissel has a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Gonzaga University and a graduate degree in Program Evaluation from Michigan State University.

*PLEASE NOTE PASS TRAINING PREREQUISITE: Attendees wishing to take this hands-on securement segment must first complete the PASS Basic On-line course (CTAA online training course) within 90 days from issuance of the PASS Basic certificate. Online course registrants will want to register and pay for the Basic online course on their own; use an email address unique to themselves; and read the CTAA instructions very carefully when registering, because CTAA is very strict with the way paperwork is handled. Securement course registrants MUST bring a copy of the PASS Basic certificate they receive upon completion of the CTAA online course to the Boston PASS Securement training ALONG WITH THEIR DRIVER'S LICENSE in order to participate in the class. This is not an instructor course.

At the end of each day of PASS securement training course, a short written test will be administered; then, evaluations will be completed of individual attendees’ techniques in each phase of securement. The paperwork will be sent to CTAA, and they will grade the written tests and review the hands-on evaluations. CTAA will send Mr. Filippone the course certificates and he will email them to a supervising party at each attendee’s transit agency/system. The process usually takes 3 - 5 working days.

DoubleTree Suites by Hilton Hotel Boston - Cambridge

Follow Us!