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Potsdam Central School won’t change start time for next school year

Posted 5/19/19

By MATT LINDSEY North Country This Week POTSDAM – Potsdam Central School will not make a change to its school start time for the 2019-20 school year. The Board of Education made the decision …

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Potsdam Central School won’t change start time for next school year

Posted

By MATT LINDSEY

North Country This Week

POTSDAM – Potsdam Central School will not make a change to its school start time for the 2019-20 school year.

The Board of Education made the decision following a pair of community forums attended by parents, staff and students.

“It was decided there would be no change to the school start time for the 2019-20 school year as we recognize that families and school staff are already making plans for fall,” PCS Superintendent Joann Chambers said.

The school board plans to develop and administer a school start time survey to all members of our school community.

“The final decision is the Board of Education's, and they expect to make a decision next fall after they have had the opportunity to review the results of the survey that will be sent to parents, staff, and students in grades 5-12,” Chamber said.

“We are working with representatives from SUNY Potsdam's Research and Sponsored Programs Department to develop a fair and unbiased survey,” Chambers said.

The Board was to have reviewed a draft of the survey instrument at their meeting May 14.

The survey will be sent electronically to parents, school staff, and middle and high school students in late May or early June. Survey results will be analyzed and summarized this September.

“It is expected the Board will make a recommendation regarding school start time later in the fall,” Chambers said.

The recommendation may include one of the options shared with the school community or the recommendation to keep the start times as they are currently.

The options are to move to a single bus run, with all three schools opening at essentially the same time; start all three schools later than they do now, perhaps 25 or 45 minutes later; or reverse the order of the school starts, with the elementary school opening first.

The school board has been exploring the feasibility of shifting start times to be better aligned with the recommendations of sleep experts.

In March of 2016, a poll was conducted asking parents and staff if they supported looking into changing start times based on scientific research of sleep recommendations for youth. 79 percent of staff and 66 percent of parents approved.