Proposal Shows Longer School Days In York

By Amber Lester Kennedy Wednesday, February 16, 2011

School days in York County will be longer next year, with some schools gaining time at the end of the day and one starting earlier.

York County school officials shared a proposal for the school day schedule during a School Board work session Monday. The division plans to add 10 minutes to the elementary school day and 15-20 minutes for middle and high schools starting next fall.

The York County School Board agreed to make the change last June in an effort to bring York County’s school days closer to the average school day in the rest of the state. In March 2007, York County received a recommendation to review the length of its school day from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools’ accreditation team. While York currently meets the minimum amount of hours required by the state (990 hours of instruction), it has a shorter school day than many divisions in Virginia.

If the proposed schedule is approved, elementary school students would attend school for six hours and 36 minutes, while students in middle and high school would attend school for six hours and 45 minutes. For most students, the extra minutes will come at the end of the day, but start times will be affected in some cases.

The proposed schedule is:

• Magruder Elementary: 8:30 a.m.-3:06 p.m.

• Bethel Manor Elementary, Coventry Elementary, Grafton Bethel Elementary, Mt. Vernon Elementary, Tabb Elementary: 8:45 a.m.-3:21 p.m.

• Dare Elementary, Seaford Elementary, Waller Mill Elementary, Yorktown Elementary: 9 a.m.-3:36 p.m.

• Grafton Middle, Queens Lake Middle, Tabb Middle: 8:00 a.m.-2:45 p.m.

• York Middle School: 8:00 a.m.-2:45 p.m.

• All High Schools: 7:20 a.m.-2:05 p.m.

To learn more about the changed schedule, click here.