Students' school day extended by 20 minutes next year

The Roanoke County School Board has voted to lengthen the school day for students beginning with the 2011-2012 school year. Elementary and secondary student school days will be extended by 20 minutes. The school day will begin five minutes earlier and end 15 minutes later than the current daily schedule.

Students’ school schedules will be as follows for the 2011-2012 school year and beyond:

Elementary schools:

Begin at 7:50 a.m.

End at 2:20 p.m.

Middle and High schools:

Begin at 8:20 a.m.

End at 3:25 p.m.

“We feel our students need additional time in the classroom,” said Roanoke County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Lorraine Lange. “We currently have one of the shortest school days in Virginia and we think we need to give our students more time to learn each day,” Lange said.

The school board also voted to extend teacher contract days to accommodate the lengthened school day. Elementary teacher contracts were extended by 20 minutes per day, while secondary teacher contracts were extended by 10 minutes per day.

(Last updated 4/14/11)