EVSC to Lengthen School Day; Change Start/End Times

Beginning Fall 2014
To give students additional instructional time and to allow teachers expanded opportunities for collaboration, the Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation is lengthening the school day for elementary students and slightly altering the day for middle school students, following a vote by the EVSC Board of School Trustees tonight. Start and end times for all EVSC schools will also be changed.
Beginning next fall, EVSC elementary school students will begin at 8:15 a.m. and dismiss at 3:10 p.m., giving them 34 additional minutes of instructional time in their school day.
Students attending high school, middle grades and K-8 schools will begin school at 7:30 a.m. and dismiss at 2:30 p.m. Because there were many different start and end times previously, this standardizes all schools – by grade level – within a common start.
David Smith, EVSC superintendent, said lengthening the school day will provide more time for focused instruction and provide more tailored teaching and supports for all students. It also allows teachers more time to collaborate, share data and plan how curriculum will be taught.
“The EVSC’s elementary school day is currently among the shortest day in the state and in our immediate area. By extending the day, we will add valuable learning time for our students and allow our teachers to meet more regularly and for longer periods of time, all of which will lead to an increase in student success,” Smith said.
The longer elementary day will also give teachers time to help students achieve through Response to Intervention (RtI). The research-based RtI pushes students who are high achievers to excel even faster and further and also helps those who also may be struggling with academic content. As RtI is expanded up to grade 5, the extra time will be beneficial, he said.
“We have been discussing the potential for adding extra minutes for some time now,” Smith said. “We have met with principals, teachers and parents and the feedback has been extremely positive.”
EVSC schools will continue to offer extracurricular activities, student meals – including breakfast – and morning and afterschool Extended Day centers will still be available. Morning daycare is currently $15 for the week.
Busing will continue to be offered, but routes and times will be altered. Elementary student buses may arrive later than normal and pick up times for students in middle grades, K-8 and high schools will be altered slightly, as well. Generally, pick up locations will not change.
As in the past, the EVSC Office of Transportation will mail postcards to families of current riders in the summer with bus information for Fall 2014. Parents of students who do not currently ride a bus, but who will need one next year, should contact the EVSC Office of Transportation at 435-1BUS.
More information and a list of frequently asked questions can be found on the EVSC’s website at www.evscschools.com/schools