Sheldon Police Chief Addresses School Driver Licenses

Date posted - August 15, 2012

With classes resuming in area schools, Sheldon Police Chief Lyle Bolkema says that each year his department fields numerous questions regarding Iowa Minor School Licenses. These licenses allow some students who don’t qualify for a normal Driver’s License to be able to drive to and from school each day.

Bolkema says in order to qualify for a Minor School License, or MSL, students must: be at least 14-1/2 years old; have completed an Iowa-approved Driver Education Course, unless exempted due to hardship; have had a valid Instruction Permit during the 6 month period immediately preceding their application for an MSL; had no moving violations, accidents, or license withdrawals during the previous 6 month period; and must live 1 mile or more from their school of enrollment.

MSL’s are valid from 5 am to 10 pm, with NO exceptions allowed to those hours. The MSL is valid only when the student is taking the most direct and accessible route to and from their home to school, as well as to and from extracurricular activities within their school district. The MSL’s may not, however, be used to drive to a different school district for athletic sharing. In addition, students may drive to a service station for refueling, as long as the station is on the most direct and accessible route between home and school, or the closest station to that route.

According to the Chief, the MSL is subject to suspension or revocation for traffic offenses or a violation of the license restrictions. He went on to say that most of the revocations for violation of restrictions come as a result of tips to police from other students who are obeying the restrictions of their MSL.

For information on the application process for an MSL, or for more details on these license, Bolkema says you can visit the Iowa Department Of Transportation website at: www.iowadot.gov/mvd/ods/msl.htm. If you missed that website address, you can find a link on this story’s page on the kiwa website, www.kiwaradio.com.

Bolkema says that if you still have specific questions you can contact him at the Sheldon Police Department at 324-2525, and he’ll do his best to get the answers to your question.

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