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JCPS Board votes to change school start times for 2024-25

The district has shared three start times and two options with the goal of improving efficiency and on-time bus service for students.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Jefferson County Public Schools will have three new start times for the 2024-25 school year.

The JCPS Board voted in favor of option one, which would change start times for more than 80 schools in the district.

Those schools will now begin at 7:30 a.m., 8:40 a.m. and 9:40 a.m.

Parents and educators who were in attendance and spoke at the meeting were not in favor of option two, which the district said would provide more on-time service compared to option one. 

RELATED: LIST | These JCPS students will not have access to bus services next school year

In April, JCPS voted to cut transportation to all magnet and traditional schools, excluding high schools where 75% or more students qualify for free and reduced lunch. 

Here are the schools affected by the changes:

7:30 a.m. to 2:10 p.m.

  • Auburndale
  • Camp Taylor
  • Norton
  • Sanders
  • Wilkerson
  • Wilder

Middle

  • Knight
  • Lassiter
  • Minor Daniels
  • Moore 
  • Ramsey

High

  • Breckenridge Metro
  • Western Magnet

Specialty

  • Newcomer Academy
  • TAPP
  • The Phoenix School of Discovery

8:40 to 3:20 p.m.

Elementary

  • Audubon
  • Brandeis
  • Carter Traditional
  • Coleridge-Taylor Montessori
  • Foster Traditional Academy
  • Greathouse/Shryock
  • Hawthorne
  • Lincoln
  • Schaffner Traditional
  • Stopher
  • Young

Specialty

  • Waller-Williams Environmental

9:40 a.m. to 4:20 p.m.

Elementary

  • Bates
  • Blue Lick
  • Chenoweth
  • Coral Ridge
  • Dunn
  • Eisenhower
  • Field
  • Greenwood
  • Hartstern
  • Johnsontown Road
  • Kenwood
  • Kerrick
  • Laukhuf
  • Luhr
  • Middletown
  • Norton Commons
  • Portland
  • Rangeland
  • Shacklette
  • Smyrna Traditional

Four JCPS board members voted for this plan.

After the vote, Hazelwood Elementary principal Courtney Grace said she was disappointed in the decision.

"You know it's not what we stood for today as elementary school principals when we really looked at the research and came together as a collective group," she said.

Grace is concerned about before- and after-school programs for next school year because many families have already been waitlisted.

"We service a community and we will do what is best for kids because we need them in our building on time everyday," she said. 

The district will take these next weeks over summer break to work on routes to align with the new start time schedules.

Carolyn Callahan, JCPS spokesperson, said the transfer window is open with the process remaining the same.

She said families of students who are no longer eligible for transportation next year received a survey link on Wednesday that they need to fill out. The survey will let JCPS staff know their plans for the 24-25 school year. Here is the survey site.

The district has also created a website called 'JCPS First Day' that will be a place for families, staff and community members to go to receive updates. 

"We will be updating this page frequently as new information is available," Callahan said. 

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