Olathe schools could change start, end times next year

Happy Thursday, Shawnee Mission!

☀️Today’s forecast: Mostly sunny. High: 67. Low: 43.

One thing to know

The Olathe school district is considering changes to its elementary, middle and high school start and end times for the 2024-2025 school year. 

Superintendent Brent Yeager said in a prerecorded video in September that the proposed changes are meant to address a bus driver shortage. These shortages caused Olathe schools to push rolling blackouts on some of its pay-to-ride bus routes last year and deal with other challenges with student transportation. 

By shifting start and end times, the school district can take a three-tiered approach to its busing schedule, allowing one bus driver to potentially transport students to up to three different schools on separate routes. 

Currently, high schoolers start at 8 a.m., middle schoolers start at 7:50 a.m. and elementary schoolers start at 8:20 a.m. 

Under the new proposal, high school students would start at 7:40 a.m., middle school students would start at 8:20 a.m. and elementary students would start at 8:55 a.m. 

The school board will vote on the start and end time recommendation at its Dec. 7 meeting. Find more information about past discussions on the issue and what district administration is proposing here. 

Public meetings Thursday

• Johnson County Board of County Commissioners at 9:30 a.m. [View agenda]
• Johnson County Board of County Commissioners Committee of the Whole at 11 a.m. [View agenda]
• JCCC Board of Trustees at 5 p.m. [View agenda] 
• Roeland Park Community Engagement Committee at 6 p.m. [View agenda]
• Overland Park Community Development Block Grant Advisory Committee at 6:30 p.m. [View agenda]
• Shawnee Board of Zoning Appeals at 7:30 p.m. [View agenda]

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A thousand words

Some brightly colored flora lingers at the Overland Park Arboretum and the Botanical Gardens as fall settles in. Photo credit Kaylie McLaughlin.