Stephens County BOE Considers Staggering Class Start Times

By Charlie Bauder, WNEG Radio, Toccoa

In an effort to find cost savings where they can, the Stephens County School System is looking at the possibility of staggering school start times in order to reduce the number of needed bus drivers.

In February, the Stephens County School Board voted 5-2 to have staff put together a proposal for staggering school start times.

School Superintendent Bryan Dorsey says the goal is to try to reduce transportation costs as much as possible.

“It is a large budget item for us,” said Dorsey. “What that would entail is separating school times large enough so that we could run some of our staff double routes.”

While his staff does not yet have a specific proposal ready, Dorsey says in general, it would involve elementary schools starting first, followed about an hour later by the high school and the middle school.

Dorsey said the end times would also be staggered by about an hour, with elementary schools ending first, followed by the middle and high schools about an hour later.

According to Dorsey, going to staggered start times would allow the school system to reduce the number of bus drivers from 57 down to the state-funded number of 43.

Those drivers would work more hours though, so dorsey says any savings would not come in salaries, but on the benefits side only.

Dorsey says the maximum savings would be about $140,000 in a year.

He says staff has looked at multiple ideas for saving money on transportation and this is the one that saves the most money.

“We only save about 3 to 5 drivers,” said Dorsey about another option of going to schools starting at the same time but with a single bus route for K-12.

Dorsey said staff is aware that a change like staggering start times would potentially create other issues and challenges for parents.

Dorsey says he hopes to have a proposal for the school board at the board’s next work session.