Stillwater school board members voted unanimously Tuesday night to flip school start times for elementary and secondary students beginning in the 2025-26 school year.

The decision means that students at Stillwater Area High School will start at 8:45 a.m., 55 minutes later than this school year, and end at 3:15 p.m.

Middle schools will start at 8:35 a.m., 45 minutes later than this school year, and end at 3:05 p.m. Elementary schools will start at 7:45 a.m., an hour earlier, and end at 2:15 p.m.

District officials say they have heard for years from parents and educators questioning the current early start for high school students. Research cited by the district shows later start times for secondary schools better align with teens’ unique sleep needs.

Officials originally planned to make the switch this fall, but district leaders recommended delaying the implementation of new start times by a year “to give families time to make arrangements for child care and other logistical changes,” said Carissa Keister, the district’s chief of staff and communications director.

Postponing the switch in start times will give the district time to hire more child care staff, design a “credit for employment” program so high school students have an option to work in child care, and develop more youth enrichment and targeted services programming after school, she said.

The school day for the St. Croix Valley Area Learning Center and Transition program will be 8:55 a.m. to 3:05 p.m., she said.

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