Seattle School Board approves later start times, pay raise for superintendent
Nov 18, 2015, 9:36 PM | Updated: Nov 19, 2015, 2:25 pm
The Seattle School Board has voted to change start times for public schools to a later time.
KING 5 reports high schools and many middle schools will start at 8:45 a.m., which is almost an hour later than most of them start now.
“We will become the largest district in the country to make this switch, and hopefully we will set a trend,” Board Director Sharon Peaslee said in a statement. “Hopefully, we will set a trend. This is a historic moment.”
The district made the following adjustments:
• Adjust all tiers 5 minutes earlier
• Add a modification that allows the Superintendent to decrease the number of 3rd Tier schools if “actual routing during spring 2016” can adjust schools while maintaining the no cost option.
The change will take effect in the 2016-2017 school year.
In addition to the later start times, the board voted to extend Superintendent Larry Nyland’s contract to 2018 and approved a 5 percent pay raise.
Nyland has announced he’ll donate the raise back to the Seattle Public Schools general fund.
The board expects transportation costs will increase in next school year due to enrollment growth, boundary changes and special education program service updates. The amount is estimated to be $182,500.
