WEST RIDGE — Parents were less than thrilled with the changes at Decatur Elementary in West Ridge Tuesday morning, saying that the new start time would be a "challenge" that would worsen with time.
Kirstin Sumner, mother of 7-year-old Graham Sumner, said though he was excited this morning, she anticipates the earlier start time would "get harder as the year goes on."
This morning, she said her kids needed to get out of bed and ready for the day about 30-45 minutes earlier than last year.
"It was challenging," Sumner said. "I wish it had stayed the same. This morning [Graham] said to me, 'Wow mom I think this is the earliest I've ever been up.'"
Robin Duncan, who was dropping off her 8-year-old daughter Claire, said they travel from nearby Sauganash to attend the elementary school, and though it's not far, the first day back to school was already proving to be a "tough start."
For their family, the alarm clock sounded at 5:30 a.m.
"We'll probably be falling over by tonight," Sumner said, adding that though she dropped her daughter off today, she will generally take the bus — getting picked up at 7 a.m. before traveling four stops to the school.
Collette Martin said that the staff at Decatur has been especially supportive with changes to its first bell, and said for her it was too early to know if the schedule would work or not.
She said her son travels from as far as the United Center to take part in the school's gifted program, so for her the trip is worth it, she said. To prepare, she said her son was in bed at 7 p.m. the previous night.
Decatur Classical School was the only Far North Side school affected by the CPS change that did not have its time reverted back to 8:15 a.m. It is still scheduled to start at 7:45 a.m. come the first day of school Sept. 8.
The changes were credited to CPS' plan to reduce the number of bus routes throughout the city, an additional aggravating factor among many parents and complicating after school programs such as sports, child care and extracurricular activities.
On July 1, Chicago Public Schools officials announced bell times would shift at some schools as part of the $200 million in cuts the school district rolled out. Schools with changing bell times were given final notice of their schedules on Monday, CPS spokeswoman Emily Bittner said.
"With a $1.1 billion budget deficit, the bell time shift provides significant savings instead of making cuts to the classroom," she said.
CPS has wavered when it comes to how much the move was expected to save the district, waffling between $13.5 and $9 million, but now saying the time reversals will only yield about $5 million in savings.
On July 1, Chicago Public Schools officials announced bell times would shift at some schools as part of the $200 million in cuts the school district rolled out. Schools with changing bell times were given final notice of their schedules on Monday, CPS spokeswoman Emily Bittner said.
"With a $1.1 billion budget deficit, the bell time shift provides significant savings instead of making cuts to the classroom," she said.
CPS has wavered when it comes to how much the move was expected to save the district, waffling between $13.5 and $9 million, but now saying the time reversals will only yield about $5 million in savings.
“Every dollar we save by staggering school bell times and streamlining transportation services next school year is one more dollar we don’t have to cut from our classrooms,” CPS CEO Forrest Claypool said in a statement. “Despite the need for savings, we are recognizing the calls from students, parents and educators to place a greater emphasis on scheduling after school activities and reducing inconveniences. We appreciate the 82 principals who worked with us to minimize disruptions and protect in-school time, and we are grateful to the 48 among those who helped us find savings that will benefit all schools.”
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