LTUSD to discuss school start times and zones at March 10 meeting

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - During its March 10 meeting, the Lake Tahoe Unified School district (LTUSD) Board of Trustees will be discussing changes to the school start time and zoning proposals. The items are up for discussion only at this meeting, and any votes would come at their March 24 meeting.

The March 10 meeting will be held at the LTUSD District Office Boardroom, 1021 Al Tahoe Blvd., as well as on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHZeyuZYC9ZXKyTO2k-sJ5Q. Ways to participate and submit public comments are listed on the agenda HERE.

Senate Bill 328 and newly instilled Education Code 46148 require the school day for the middle and high schools in California to begin no earlier than 8:00 a.m. and 8:30 a.m., respectively, effective no later than July 1, 2022. Because of this, LTUSD released a plan of start times that met with some resistance from parents and have a new plan on the table.

During Thursday's board meeting, a new plan for start times will be discussed:

Elementary 8:00 a.m. - 8:15 a.m. (release time between 2:20-2:35: 6 hr, 20 min day) - currently 8:35-9:15 a.m. to 2:55-3:35 p.m.
High School 8:30 a.m. - 8:45 a.m. (release time between 3:10-3:25: 6 hr, 40 min day) - currently 7:55 a.m. - 2:40 p.m.
Middle School 8:45 a.m. - 9:00 a.m. (release time 3:00-3:15: 6 hr, 15 min day) - currently 7:45 a.m. - 1:55 p.m.

If school start times change, the neighborhood school zones would have to change to provide busses for students and not make some students ride a bus for one hour, or more. Just how that will look will also be discussed on March 10 after LTUSD leadership received input from school and community groups.

Revised Proposal - No overlapping zones:
Zone 1: Sierra House - transportation provided to SH from Zone 1
Zone 2: TVES - transportation provided to TVES from Zone 2
Zone 3: Meyers - transportation provided to Meyers from Zone 3
● Bijou remains a TWBI with no zone, transportation to and from three elementary schools to Bijou

The Bijou two-way immersion (TWI) program will be touched on during Thursday's meeting but is slated for a full discussion at the trustees' March 24 meeting.

Bijou moves from a K-5 to a TK-8th TWBI over the next 3 years
● 2022-2023 being TK-6th
● 2023-2024 TK-7th
● 2024-2025 TK-8th
● Once a child completes 5th grade, the family could choose to continue TWBI at Bijou or transition to a mainstream, English-only program at STMS.

If the start time and school zones are approved on March 24, the following timeline will be in place:

1. March-April: Schools will survey families on preferred choices for 2022-2023:
a. Go to zoned school
b. Request to stay at current school (TVES, SH or Meyers), and provide own transportation.
c. Continue at Bijou, and provide own transportation, or use transportation from an elementary school

2. May-June: If there are more requests for a school than a school’s/grade’s capacity:
a. Give priority to neighborhood students
b. Admit 5th graders, then 4th graders, etc. (siblings if space available)
c. Conduct a lottery at school, reserving 5-10% space for new neighborhood students until start of school year
d. Notify families by end of June

3. Late August: review enrollment numbers and space available to determine if a family’s original choice can be granted