JCPS begins new school year with different start times and bus routes
It was all hands on deck for Jefferson County Public Schools on Tuesday as the district made last-minute preparations for the first day of school.
Teachers, administrators and bus drivers were busy getting ready to help students navigate the new school start times and new bus routes that take effect when school starts on Wednesday morning.
"We've made a lot of changes this year, and we're so excited to have the kids back in school to start implementing those changes," JCPS Chief of Communications Carolyn Callahan told 비바카지노 Viva.
Callahan said the district's transportation team has been working around the clock to learn their new bus routes.
"We have had bus drivers who have been doing dry runs of their routes in their empty buses so that they can learn and be ready. We even had some bus drivers who came in over the weekend and used their personal vehicles because this is so important to them and drove around to see where their routes would be this year," Callahan said.
Still, JCPS has heard from many parents who are concerned about fewer bus stops this year and longer walks for students.
According to Callahan, the district is getting a high volume of calls on its bus stop hotline, 502-485-RIDE, that's designed to help parents and guardians who can't find their child's bus stop. In addition, Callahan said the district has received more than 4,000 responses to its online , where parents can express safety concerns about the new bus routes for the 2023-24 school year.
Callahan said she expects to receive even more responses as students return to class.
Between that and JCPS schools adjusting to nine different start times this year, Portland Elementary Principal Michelle Perkins said clear communication between schools and parents is key to help the transition go smoothly.
"It's going to take a minute for everybody to figure out," Perkins said. "But I think as long as everybody's giving each other grace and communicating in appropriate ways to each other, we can fix it."
Callahan said the district is doing all it can to help students and parents juggle their new schedules and bus routes, but says the changes are necessary.
"We know that change is hard. We know that this is going to be difficult, but it's what we have to do. We can't have kids missing as much school as they were last year," Callahan said.
Meanwhile, teachers finalized lesson plans and put the final touches on their classrooms on Tuesday ahead of the first day of school. Callahan said JCPS Nutrition Services is preparing to serve approximately 96,000 students across the district.