PITTSBURGH — It was an 8-to-1 vote, but in the end, the Pittsburgh Public Schools Board of Directors said they listened to students and parents, creating a four-tiered system to adjust start times.
“I think it gets us closer to where we need to be to make sure all of our students have the best chance to get a good education, based off when science tells us about when students should start school,” said Gene Walker, PPS Board of Directors District 9.
The majority of high schools will start class at 7:40 a.m. Other schools will also see minor changes, including those in Tier 2: elementary and middle school students, who will start five minutes earlier. But even those minor changes had some of the board asking questions.
“When my kids went to Minadeo, this was their exact bell schedule, and it was not easy,” said Tracey Reed, PPS Board of Directors District 5.
Two primary reasons for these changes are transportation and student success rates, with board members citing research that supports high school students starting later. As for the bus schedule, officials said this will create a level of alignment, allowing them to accommodate the more than 17,000 students who live in city limits with a limited number of drivers
“There’s a lot of pieces of the puzzle we have to put together to make sure that we can provide transportation for everybody in the city,” said PPS Chief Operations Officer Michael McNamara.
Dr. Wayne Walters, PPS superintendent, said the plan is not perfect.
“We know not everyone will be happy with the changes, but we hope the majority of you understand the value of what we’re trying to do,” he said.
The first day of school for most students is Monday, Aug. 28. Kindergarten starts Thursday, Aug. 31.
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