OCPS considers school start time changes

Orange County Public Schools is considering new start times for elementary, middle and high schools. 

This comes after Senate Bill 1112 and House Bill 733 were passed in 2023, requiring all middle schools to start no earlier than 8 a.m. and all high schools to start no earlier than 8:30 a.m. 

Two years later, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed Senate Bill 296, which amended the earlier bills to allow school districts to make a decision on whether to adjust start times.

OCPS board members reviewed proposed start times, which would have elementary schools starting at 7:45 a.m., middle schools starting at 9:35 a.m. and high schools starting at 8:40 a.m. 

According to Mary Bridges, senior executive director of the OCPS Student Services Department, one of the main concerns with this plan is the 7:45 a.m. elementary start time. This has sparked safety concerns among parents because children would be waiting at bus stops in the dark. 

Another concern is the impact it would have on after-school care, because students will be getting out early while most parents still are at work. 

For middle schools, starting later in the day also means getting out later in the day. The main concerns include increased traffic at dismissal time; decreased teachers’ planning time; and impacts to sports and club participation. Furthermore, weather delays could cause middle-schoolers to have a very late dismissal. 

“If it’s 4:35 p.m. and there’s lightning or there’s rain, and they have to stay longer, they may not be getting home until 6:30 or 7 o’clock,” Bridges said. 

High schools include some of the same concerns, including impacts to sports and club participation. But more than that, concerns also include students not being able to get to work on time; not being able to assist with younger siblings; and the effects it would have on dual-enrollment students and their classes. 

Some general concerns for all three levels include lighting on the playing fields, lunch times and cleaning schedules for custodians. 

“Some schools don’t have lighting on the fields,” Bridges said. “For instance, for the middle school, if they were to have a track meet after 4:35 p.m., it just really would not be possible without lighting on their fields. … If the elementary schools start so early, their lunch would be early. If they did stay in extended care, they may not be home for dinner until very late.” 

With multiple concerns being presented to board members, District 6 School Board member Stephanie Vanos asked if there would be any benefits to making these changes. 

“We cannot argue with the science,” OCPS COO Roberto Pacheco said. “Science has stated that later start times does help students with their educational experience.” 

Some benefits of having later start times for middle and high schools include better sleep; better well-being; improved focus, performance and grades; as well as more daylight for high schoolers to drive in, which leads to less car accidents. 

OCPS released a survey out to the community for its input to then make a decision on whether these changes will be made. 

For Aileen Junco, a parent at OCPS, these changes will do no good. 

“Having high-schoolers going in late would leave them no time to do homework or anything high school demands,” she said. “I can’t even imagine for students who do dual enrollment and have to tackle school work, college work, extracurricular activities and a job if they have to leave school late. It’s definitely not setting high-schoolers up for success.” 

Brittany Skinner, another parent, has shared on Facebook that there is “no way” her 4 year old will be getting on a bus at 6:30 a.m. She said the best solution would be to add more transportation and allow elementary schools to start at 8:30 a.m. with high-schoolers. 

“Small kids aren’t more resilient to waking up early,” she added. “It will just make their days longer.” 

Other parents think these changes are appropriate to make. 

Erin Valera is a mom at OCPS and thinks high-schoolers should start later in the day, while elementary school children should start earlier. 

“This schedule would more closely follow the biological development of each age group,” she said. “Teens, as they develop, favor staying up later in the evening and would benefit from sleeping in a bit, while the younger kids naturally wake up earlier and go to bed earlier.” 

Valera added she has lived in Charleston, South Carolina, for a number of years where school operated on this schedule. 

“It worked well, and no one seemed to take issue with it,” she said. 

If implemented, these changes will be in effect on July 1, 2026. 

The survey closed Nov. 21. School Board members will discuss their findings at a later date.