Greetings Parents The Vista Unified School District has posted on their VUSD website the new Bell Schedule for 2012-2013. Eight Elementary Schools will have an early start time at 7:30 a.m. (VUSD elementary schools affected for the 2012-2013 school years are: Lake Elementary, Alamosa Elementary, Breeze Elementary, Grapevine Elementary, Maryland Elementary, Mission Meadows Elementary, Monte Vista Elementary and Olive Elementary). This early start time is too early for students and families. Elementary-age children need adequate sleep in order to be alert, function and learn. Studies show, “…delaying school start times by one hour…7:30 to 8:30 increases standardized test scores approximately 2 percentile points…suggesting that later start times would narrow the gaps in student achievement”. In addition to academic performance, student safety is another issue which will likely result in heavy traffic from other nearby high schools that have the same start times. As parents drive their children to school (i.e. both Lake Elementary and RBV High Schools), heavy traffic and the potential for increased accidents exists. Further impacting the traffic will be equally heavy pedestrian traffic as school children walk to school causing potentially dangerous traffic situations. Ultimately, this new early start time is not what is best for students or their families. Please sign this petition if you agree. We are requesting the same start time the other elementary schools in our district have: a very reasonable start time of 8:30 a.m.!

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