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CCSD Proposes Shuffling School Start Times

Stock photo by Laker via Pexels.

The Clarke County School District is considering changing when the school day starts and ends, to maximize instruction time and to cope with a shortage of bus drivers.

According to a press release, the district can’t provide high-level transportation service to all students under the current schedule. The recent on-time morning dropoff rate for middle schools was 82%, while the high school rate was 75%, both below industry standards.

“With the current two-tiered bus schedule (elementary and middle/high school) and dedicated routes for Classic City and the Athens Community Career Academy (ACCA), route times are stacked too closely together, which does not allow for any margin of error if there is an issue with a route or a student,” according to the release. “Additionally, CCSD’s current model does not allow for flexibility when a bus driver resigns, is out with an absence, or on a day when there are a significant number of field trips scheduled. This situation is further exacerbated by a significant bus driver shortage being felt not only locally, but across the nation.”

Currently, elementary school classes start at 7:40 a.m., middle school at 8:35 a.m. and high school at 8:45 a.m., except for Classic City High, which starts at 8:15 a.m. One proposal recommended by Director of Transportation Shurod Swift and a committee has elementary schools starting at 8:15 a.m.; middle schools, Clarke Central and Cedar Shoals at 7:30 a.m.; and the Career Academy and Classic City High at 8 a.m. Another shows elementary schools starting at 7:40 a.m., middle schools at 8:30 a.m., and all high schools at 8 a.m.

Some parents of elementary school students are worried that pushing the starting time forward will interfere with their own work schedules—many in government jobs or the hospitality and construction industries begin work at or before 8 a.m. Others complain that their children are getting on a bus at 6:40 a.m. for an hour-long ride to school.

“Maybe a better solution to the CCSD bus driver problem would be to pay their drivers better and have trained monitors on every bus,” said Missy Wilson, who has three children in the district. “Make the job better.”

Having teenagers start earlier also concerns parents. The Centers for Disease Control and the American Academy of Pediatrics say that beginning the school day before 8:30 a.m. is detrimental to the mental and physical health of teenagers, who need 8–10 hours of sleep. According to the CDC, changes in biological rhythms during puberty means adolescents become sleepy later at night and need to sleep later in the morning. Early start times and late bedtimes means many students aren’t getting enough sleep.

District officials are accepting comments on the proposed schedule changes through Apr. 30. You can submit them to feedback@clarke.k12.ga.us.

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