Celebrating Nichole Hollis: A Champion for Safer, Equitable Journeys to School
The Safe Routes Partnership is proud to announce Nichole Hollis as the recipient of the 2024 Hubsmith Safe Routes Champion Award. Nichole is a transformative leader in Atlanta's Safe Routes to School Program, dedicated to creating safer, more equitable pathways for children. With over a decade of experience, she has enhanced transportation options in underserved communities through innovative initiatives like walking school buses and bike rodeos. By partnering with local and national organizations, Nichole has driven tangible improvements in safety infrastructure near schools, significantly impacting families in Communities of Concern. Her commitment to equity inspires fellow practitioners nationwide, making her a deserving candidate for the 2024 Hubsmith Safe Routes Champion Award.
Nichole Hollis has worked for over a decade to create safer environments for youth traveling to school and has supported many schools in metro Atlanta with multi-modal transportation programming. Her mission is to ensure that cities are built for kids while giving them the tools and resources to be changemakers in their neighborhoods. In her current role, she brings these experiences to schools and communities, serving as the inaugural Manager of the City of Atlanta’s Safe Routes to School (SRTS) program within the Department of Transportation.
Under her leadership, the SRTS program has successfully implemented more safety- and education-focused initiatives across schools, demonstrating her dedication and impact to this movement. Nichole leads the agency in ensuring that students within the Atlanta Public Schools district, one of the largest districts in Georgia with primarily urban communities, have safe and accessible pathways to get around the city.
Her work, whether helping parents start a walking school bus group or bike bus or train, co-creating with community partners to bring resources to the city's equity priority areas, or developing plans for safe pedestrian and bike-friendly infrastructure, is making a tangible difference. Nichole's efforts are bringing these goals to life across the city’s 12 council districts, and she has developed equity-focused strategies and plans at the state and local levels to benefit students' routes to school.
As a Safe Routes to School practitioner, Nichole is helping to break barriers so everyone can have a good quality of life wherever they live and has educated thousands of youth on being safe commuters while touting the fun and appealing sides of walking and biking to school leading into adulthood. As she continues her journey of improving neighborhoods and laying the groundwork in her role, her dream is to one day see those children grow up to use the city in a way that allows them true and equitable accessibility to walk, bike, roll, and thrive. Her vision for the future is one where every child can navigate the city with ease and joy.