Some students may not feel saved by the bell. On Tuesday, the Pinellas County School Board voted to adjust some school start and end times for a dozen schools.
While some parents say the changes won’t affect their families, others say the new start times will force them to either pay for child care before school, or change their work schedules.
The District said the changes are due to bus schedules. Officials worked with the transportation department, purchased new routing software, and worked with an outside consultant to find ways for school buses to be more efficient. They found by changing start times, they could accomplish that.
The changes will range from a 15 minute difference to nearly an hour difference.
Elementary Schools that will start 15 minutes later
(8:15 a.m. - 3:15 p.m. to 8:30 a.m. - 3:15 p.m.)
- Campbell Park
- Fairmount Park
- Gulfport Montessori
- Lakewood
- Maximo
- Melrose
- Sandy Lane
Elementary Schools that will start 1hr and 10min later
(7:35 a.m. - 1:45 p.m. to 8:45 a.m. - 2:55 p.m.)
- Azalea
- Sawgrass Lake
James B. Sanderlin K-8 will start 30 min later
8:55 a.m. - 3:05 p.m. to 9:25 a.m. - 3:35 p.m.
Perkins Elementary will start 30 min later
8:45 a.m. - 2:55 p.m. to 9:15 a.m. - 3:25 p.m.
Clearwater Intermediate will start 25 min earlier
9:40 a.m. - 4:10 p.m. to 9:15 a.m. - 3:45 p.m.