The Concord Community School Board approved a plan Monday night to change start times at schools.
A plan to change start times has been in the works at Concord all school year. Many area districts are considering or have already adjusted start times to deal with a shortage of school bus drivers.
Shannan Simon is the Transportation Director for Concord. She said there were many meetings to figure out the best way to schedule bussing to work for everyone.
“Obviously academics is first, but athletics and the marching band and the fine arts areas are very important to the Concord community so we wanted to make sure that those were protected areas as well.”
The new schedule takes effect for the 2019-2020 school year beginning in August. The district’s four elementary schools will start at 7:25 a.m. and be released at 2:15. The Junior High runs 7:50 to 2:50, High School from 8:20 to 3:20 and the Intermediate School from 8:50 to 3:50.
The new schedule also eliminates late start Tuesdays in the district, which were adopted to provide time for staff and teacher meetings and professional development. A new time for those has yet to be determined.