The Hendry County School District shared calendar and start-time proposals and asked residents for input on a possible later start for secondary schools.

The district said it recently adopted a calendar that adds an October fall break to give families and staff a short mid-term break. Officials described the break as intended to provide a short period of rejuvenation roughly every nine weeks.

Start times: presenters explained state guidance that will take effect in 2026-27: middle schools may not start earlier than 8:00 a.m. and high schools may not start earlier than 8:30 a.m. The district asked the public whether Hendry should keep a schedule similar to the current one (middle schools roughly 7:20 a.m., high schools roughly 7:30–7:40 a.m.) or move to later secondary start times. Staff explained the local trade-offs: later secondary starts push dismissal and activity end times later, which affects after-school jobs, athletics (some events are in Sarasota), sibling caretaking and other family logistics. Later secondary dismissal also can require earlier elementary start times to manage bus and transportation logistics.

Process and next steps: the district said it must collect community feedback and report local stakeholder views as part of compliance with state guidance. Officials encouraged residents to complete the town-hall feedback survey (QR codes and online links) and said the district will publish results and consider them when setting schedules ahead of 2026-27.

Ending: The district emphasized it seeks public comment and will provide updates as the state timeline and local decisions develop.