School board approves compliance plan, keeps high-school start times unchanged

The Levy County School Board on Monday approved a compliance plan under a Florida law that sets windows for elementary, middle and high school start times, choosing to maintain the districts current schedule rather than move high schools later.

Board member Mr. Bennett told colleagues the state provided a compliance pathway for districts that face practical barriers. Bennett said later high-school starts would likely require additional bus routes and drivers and produce higher fuel costs; shifting high-school end times later also could push athletic events into times that reduce instructional minutes. Given those operational and financial challenges, the board approved the plan by voice vote after a motion and second.

The plan is the districts formal response to the statutory start-time requirements and reflects ongoing public comment and prior meetings on the issue. Bennett said the district is close in many cases to the statutory windows but that bus-route capacity and driver availability present the main obstacles to full scheduling changes.

Board members did not identify a dollar figure attached to the required transportation changes during the meeting. The motion to approve the compliance plan passed by voice vote; the board did not record a roll-call tally in the public transcript.

The approval preserves the districts current bell schedule while leaving open future operational changes if transportation capacity or funding changes. The board moved on to other agenda items and adjourned to an executive session following the public meeting.