Board of Education Approves Later School Start Times

The Montgomery County Board of Education voted Tuesday (Feb. 10, 2015) to change school starting and ending times in Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) for the 2015-2016 school year—moving middle and high school start times 20 minutes later and elementary school start times 10 minutes later.This change will not affect the order in which students go to school, but will lengthen the elementary school day by 10 minutes, making it 6 hours and 25 minutes. The additional 10 minutes will only be used for lunch or recess.
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Beginning with the 2015-2016 school year, the starting and ending times for MCPS will be:

Level 

Time 

Length of Day 

High School 

7:45 a.m.–2:30 p.m. 

6 hours, 45 minutes 

Middle School 

 8:15 a.m.–3:00 p.m. 

6 hours, 45 minutes 

Elementary School Tier 1 

 9:00 a.m.–3:25 p.m. 

6 hours, 25 minutes 

Elementary School Tier 2 

9:25 a.m.–3:50 p.m. 

6 hours, 25 minutes 

View chart with start times for each school in MCPS, including special schools

 
 

 

Read below to see the options considered and timeline for this decision

Learn more about the options

Public Input on Bell Times Options

The Montgomery County Board of Education held two public hearings on bell times options and received over 1,000 emails. MCPS also worked with stakeholder groups and community partners to gather feedback on the options. A report on the feedback received was provided to the Board on February 6, 2015.

View Archives of Previous Recommendations and Reports on MCPS Bell Times.