By Dewey Terrill
JC Post
One information item on the Geary USD 475 Board of Education meeting agenda Monday evening included included the possibility being considered by staff to flip the secondary school starting and ending times for the 2024-2025 year. The topic was a discussion item on the Board's agenda but the BOE will not be required to vote on the times
Junction City High School students would attend class from 7:40 a.m. until 2:55 p.m. while Junction City and Fort Riley Middle School students would attend from 8:30 a.m. to 3:45 p.m. Those times are nearly the opposite right now with the high school going from 8:15 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. and middle schools from 7:40 a.m. to 3:55 p.m.
During a discussion with the Board, the Director of Secondary Education, Kate Stewart, noted that the league is kind of falling apart and officials are looking at another league which would require Junction City to travel a lot farther to athletic events. So far this year JCHS students have already missed approximately 1,800 hours of school time for activities and athletics. That caused officials to look at data which indicated starting and ending times haven't been revised for 10 years with the exception of a few minor adjustments. Flipping the middle and high school times for next year would essentially be the plan. Elementary school times would remain the same.
Board member Dr. Beth Hudson remembered the discussions 10 years ago that led to a change to the current starting times. Students were missing and some weren't coming to school because they were tired.
Board member Jason Butler felt with the earlier high school dismissal time that would leave more time for students at home in the evening for academics and family.
Other key points from the discussion included:
--JCHS students are currently traveling much farther than ever before for activities.
--High school students could possibly be at home when middle school students arrive or they could pick them up after school.
--There needs to be an approximate 50 minute gap between starting and ending times between the high school and middle schools.
JC Post also checked with JCHS Interim Athletic Director Chris Bogenhagen about the league angle. In recent years the Centennial League has lost some teams but there is no push by Junction City to look at another conference. There is always interest in expanding the conference.
Because of the loss of some schools from the Centennial League, Junction City teams are having to travel farther for some of their athletic events. Examples could include trips to schools in western Kansas and Wichita. The possible earlier starting time for JCHS would help keep students in class more often.