The only thing Ursula Simmons could think about was taking care of her students. The only thing they could think about was lunch, a testament to the paraprofessional’s calming influence.

On Oct. 5, Simmons and five special-needs students from PS 811 in the Bronx were returning from the Staples store in Co-op City where they go three times a week to learn about being in the workforce.

Simmons heard screeching tires behind their school bus just before a car hit them and the bus began to spin, doing a few 360s. When she heard the girls yelling, Simmons said she “tried to stay calm, to keep my body as stiff as I could, because if they saw me freaking out, they would freak out.”

When the bus landed on its side on the Bruckner Expressway, Simmons said the students were eager to get off. “Miss Ursula, we’re not going to make it to school to eat,” they told her.

“I found that so amazing; they are so resilient,” said Simmons, who also serves as a U.S. Air Force Reserve medic.

Suzie Perez-Gonzales, the UFT’s Bronx environmental health and safety liaison who met them at Jacobi Medical Center, said the same about Simmons. “It was amazing how she worked with the kids; the smiles on their faces as she spoke to them.”

PS 811 Chapter Leader Sybil Smith called Simmons a dedicated worker who “always puts the students first. She takes her job very, very seriously. I think her military background prepared her for this.”

Simmons said, “You don’t think you will remember what to do during complete chaos, but you do.” Her first thought was, “Am I well enough to be helpful?” Then she stayed calm and asked the simple questions: Are you OK? What day is it? She listened for slurred speech and looked for physical signs of injury. “I knew they shouldn’t be moved if they were hurt.”

Luckily, she said, a group of off-duty firefighters who were on the expressway “took over the scene immediately and we were able to get medical attention quickly.”

Afterward, Simmons called the school and parents to assure them things were under control and then insisted on a trip to the hospital.

Once off the bus, the students sat on the grass worrying about food and their schoolbags. The first thing they did in the emergency room was eat, and then their teacher brought their bags.

Throughout the ordeal, Simmons wasn’t thinking about herself. “I had to make her eat and drink,” Perez-Gonzales said. “I told her she couldn’t take care of the students if she didn’t take care of herself.”

Simmons was inspired to a life of service early on. “As a child, women in military uniforms were few. I saw the Andrew Sisters on a small, black-and-white TV and that was it — joining the military was the one thing I was going to do.”

She became a medic after 9/11 and after basic training, she returned as an airwoman to work as a substitute para. “Fast forward 10-plus years,” she said, “and I have two amazing jobs I love.”

What did she tell the kids when it was over? Always the educator, Simmons said, “You guys get angry with me, but see how important it is to put on your seat belts?”

(Editor's note: Simmons was honored with the Audrey Chasen Award at the UFT's Teacher Union Day on Nov. 6, 2016.)