NIAGARA FALLS, NY (WKBW) — Some Western New York school districts are hoping to solve their bus driver shortage with new start and end times for students.
7 News Senior Reporter Eileen Buckley checked in with some districts about these new times and how parents are reacting.
“So I'm hoping this will be a good fix for everybody,” replied Rebecca Tantillo, parent, Niagara Falls City School District.
Tantillo has two daughters at Niagara Falls High School. She tells me getting her freshman and senior out of the house even earlier will be a challenge
“They're not feeling great about it. They would, as teenagers, love to sleep in a little bit, but they're getting up and getting their day moving. They can start working in the afternoon earlier. I get to work — without any problems in the morning — everybody is gone. It’s a win-win I think,” explained Tantillo.
At Niagara Falls High School students will now be starting at 7:55 a.m., 20-minutes earlier than last year.
The Falls high school students will be dismissed at 2:30 p.m, 30-minutes earlier than last year.
Falls City Schools Superintendent Mark Laurrie says it was the best solution because the district needs 80 drivers and is short 40 drivers.
“We had good cooperation with our union partners to have a change really in their working conditions because we changed their schedule 25-minutes and they rose to the occasion. They agreed to do this on a one-year basis with a review, but they knew for the safe, orderly opening of schools — this is something we had no choice to do,” Laurrie remarked.
Last school year there were a number of pick-up delays due to driver shortages. But Laurrie tells me it's hard to guarantee there won't still be delays.
“I would be misleading everybody if I made a promise that there won't be delays, even in the best of times — even in the best of times there are delays,” replied Laurrie.
In the Frontier Central School District new start and end times are set for high school, middle school, and elementary students:
Frontier High School students will begin at 7:05 a.m. and be done at 1:46 p.m.
Middle school students will start from 7:40 a.m. to 2:21 p.m. At the Big Tree and Pinehurst Elementary schools, 8:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. and Blasdell and Cloverbank will go from 9:15 a.m. to 3:45 p.m.
The Lancaster Central School District tells 7 News its transportation department just launched a new online system for bus information. This is where parents will be able to access pick-up and drop-off times.
Some school districts tell 7 News they are not making any adjustments
A spokesperson for the Amherst Central School District says the district contracts with First Student and they are "all set for opening with no adjustments to start times.”
Starpoint Central School District Superintendent Sean Croft tells me they do not "anticipate any change in start times" because their transportation company has done a "tremendous job" in filling driver spots.
Croft said at this point, "the district will not be delaying any start times for its buildings”. But Croft says there might be times during the school year that individual runs could be delayed due to a lack of sub-drivers.
According to research, early start times might be tough on students. More than 90 percent of high schools in the U.S. start before 8:30 a.m.
The CDC says earlier start times can lead to several health risks and poor academic performance.
Health experts recommend students go in at 8:30 a.m. to give kids the opportunity to get the sleep they need.
But Superintendent Laurrie noted that in his district, there are other obstacles.
“And the problem with that, at least in Niagara Falls is the high school students — need to be home before their elementary siblings. There’s a childcare issue and many high schoolers are watching their younger siblings. Number two, high schoolers have jobs — plenty of jobs and they want to get to work on time and number three — unfortunately sometimes sports rule — rule the clock and we could not push the day that much further ahead, so this was the best option. We’ll try it out,” replied Laurrie.
“What's the hardest part about getting a teen out of bed?” Buckley asked the Falls parent.
“Getting them in bed at night on time and off — iPads, laptops, and phones so that they can get moving earlier in the morning, Tantillo answered.
