Westford School Committee approves later start times for 2025 school year

The Westford Public Schools School Committee voted Feb. 3 to change school start times for the 2025–26 school year, approving a schedule that moves grades 6–12 to a roughly 8:00 a.m. start and later bell times for elementary grades. The roll call vote was unanimous: Tom — aye; Bill — aye; Sean — aye; Laurie — aye; Marie — aye; Catherine — aye; and the chair recorded an aye.

The approved proposal sets the districtwide target schedule used in committee documents: grades 6–12 starting at 8:00 a.m. with an approximate 2:20 p.m. dismissal; grades 3–5 starting about 8:50 a.m. and dismissing around 2:55 p.m.; and kindergarten through grade 2 starting about 9:10 a.m. and dismissing around 3:15 p.m. Committee members said the vote is subject to minor operational refinements, and that transportation vendor schedules and some school-to-school…