Board hears plan to add 10 minutes to school day to align high school schedules for CTE center and provide teacher time
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Summary
District staff proposed adding 10 minutes to daily schedules to align comprehensive high schools for shared Career and Technical Education programming, create roughly four days of teacher time and add calendar flexibility; the board asked staff to seek principal and teacher input before any calendar amendment.
Ms. Leifer, a College Station ISD staff member, presented a proposal to add 10 minutes to the official instructional day and explained how the district would use the extra time to align schedules across the comprehensive high schools and support the Phase 2 CTE center.
Ms. Leifer told the board that the Texas Education Agency requires a minimum of 420 instructional minutes per day and that the district currently schedules more than the minimum; adding 10 minutes would raise the district's daily minutes and provide the equivalent of approximately 3.9 extra days over the school year. The presentation described two options for using that built-up time: (1) amend the 2025'26 calendar to allocate four full days focused on teachers (half-day planning and half-day work time), or (2) wait and incorporate the minutes into the 2026'27 calendar.
Why alignment matters: Ms. Leifer said the CTE center's Phase 2 programming requires the two comprehensive high schools to operate on parallel bell schedules so students and staff can move between campuses without losing class time. Without identical schedules, staff said, the district would be unable to reliably transport students back and forth and the center's programs could not be used as intended.
Transportation and equity considerations: Ms. Leifer said transportation logistics and lunchtime scheduling require aligning passing times and ensuring 30-minute lunch periods and five-minute passing windows at both schools. Board members asked about impacts on elementary schedules, testing windows and childcare; Ms. Leifer said the district would solicit principal and teacher feedback through DEIC and other forums before proposing a calendar amendment.
Teacher-time tradeoffs: Several trustees noted that adding 10 minutes each day is equivalent to four additional days on the annual calendar; staff proposed 'giving' that time back to teachers in the form of dedicated professional time and planning. Ms. Leifer emphasized the district's intent to preserve teacher planning and to rely on input from principals, DEIC and teachers when finalizing a schedule.
Next steps: staff will consult principals, gather DEIC feedback (District Educational Improvement Committee) and return to the board in May with proposed calendar amendments or options for 2026'27. The board may take action in a future meeting depending on feedback and legislative developments.
Ending: The board received the presentation and requested broader campus-level input before any change to the adopted 2025'26 calendar.