Fort Worth schools to have extended classroom hours in 2022-2023. Here’s why.

The Fort Worth school board Tuesday approved a new calendar for the 2022-2023 school year that provides 30 additional learning hours, adds more teacher preparation and eliminates weather make-up days.

The new calendar extends each school day by 15 minutes and has students attending class earlier, leaving later, or a combination of the two depending on their grade level.

Pre-K and elementary students will leave their classes 15 minutes later than their current hours, with a 7:50 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. schedule for Pre-K and a 7:50 a.m. to 3:20 p.m. schedule for kindergarten.

Middle school students will start classes 15 minutes earlier, starting their day at 9 a.m. and ending at 4:30 p.m.

High school students will start classes 10 minutes earlier and leave their classes 5 minutes later, giving them an 8:15 a.m. to 3:45 p.m. schedule.

New Fort Worth ISD school hours:

• Pre-K: 7:50 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

• Elementary: 7:50 a.m. to 3:20 p.m.

• Middle School: 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

• High School: 8:15 a.m. to 3:45 p.m.

The change comes after House Bill 4545, which went into effect in June, added a 30-hour additional instruction requirement for students who fail their STAAR testing.

The 15 extra minutes a day lead to a total of additional 30 classroom hours by the end of the year — or four school days.

The required instruction hours will also be met through Saturday programs, summer school and before and after school tutoring, said deputy superintendent Karen Molinar.

The new calendar maintains the same amount of teacher flex days, adds an additional teacher preparation day and eliminates inclement weather make-up days compared with the current calendar.

The new calendar, along with non-traditional calendars, will be available on the district’s website, Molinar said.