Cedar Rapids schools could start their day at a different time next year

CEDAR RAPIDS — Possible new start times for the school day and changes to busing routes are being considered as the Cedar Rapids school district prepares to close schools and restructure grade levels.

The Cedar Rapids school board Monday was presented with decision-making criteria that will guide the creation of several proposals for how the district could change its start times and transportation routes.

Changes to the bell schedule are being considered as district leaders prepare for a reconfiguration of the district’s K-8 schools for the 2027-28 school year. This includes the closure of five elementary schools and a change to a fifth and sixth grade intermediate model.

Families will get the opportunity to weigh any proposed changes before a decision is made as district leaders continue to stress intentional community engagement and transparency in making decisions.

The school board anticipates making a decision Dec. 14.

“How we reach a decision matters just as much as the decision itself,” Superintendent Tawana Lannin said. “The board asked us to establish clear expectations, build meaningful feedback loops, engage stakeholders early and demonstrate how the information we gather helps shape our decisions.”

The criteria was created by the Strategic Plan Executive Committee, a 23-member volunteer group working to address questions related to the district’s school restructuring and consolidation plan. The decision-making criteria was presented to the school board Monday and is expected to be on a future agenda for board approval.

The SPEC team includes 13 community members, building principals, district leaders and a school board representative.

School bell schedules and transportation are interdependent. Start and dismissal times determine how efficiently buses and drivers can serve multiple schools based on transportation capacity.

Proposed school start and dismissal times will be evaluated through this proposed decision-making criteria that asks:

Does it provide reliable, on-time service each day and reduce or maintain transportation costs at current levels?Does it align with research and best practices regarding student sleep, learning, attendance and developmental needs and ensure students have continued access to athletics and extracurricular opportunities?Does it add value by providing additional transportation options such as paid routes, community stops or other service models that expand access for students and families?

Each of these criteria Include a green, yellow or red description. Green means the scenario can move forward for consideration. Yellow means significant modification or additional analysis would be required. Red means the scenario is not operationally or financially viable and it stops there, said Scott Wing, transportation manager for the district.

One consideration for school start times is a recommendation by the American Academy of Pediatrics that teenagers start school at 8:30 a.m. or later to align with their biological sleep rhythms.

A consideration for transportation routes is a state law limiting one-way school bus ride times to 60 minutes for elementary students and 75 minutes for high school students. Wing said they would aim for every student’s ride time to be less than that.

Kennedy High School Principal Jason Kline — a SPEC member — said once the criteria was approved by the school board it would be used to evaluate each bell and bus schedule proposed and determine which scenarios were viable.

Once three scenarios have been determined viable, they will be presented for broader community engagement, Kline said. This could happen through surveys and open houses at each high school.

This would be another piece of data the school board can use to make a final decision, Kline said.

“We’ll be able to learn more about what the impact is on families, what supports would need to be in place,” said Jillian Schulte, chief organizational officer for the Cedar Rapids district.

This includes engaging community partners like childcare centers and before- and after-school care providers, Schulte said.

At school board member Kaitlin Byers’ request, Wing said he could apply the proposed decision-making criteria to the current transportation schedule.

“It would be cool to see if we’re actually gaining something, and we’re not taking a step backward, we’re actually taking a step forward,” Byers said.