A student prepares to board a First Student bus at Quail Run Elementary School in this file photo from June 2011.

Though Lawrence school district leaders generally agreed that later start times for the district’s secondary schools would benefit students, the cost of such a schedule change caused some hesitation.

At the school board meeting Monday, district administrators recommended that high school students have the option to begin their classes after 9 a.m., but that start times for elementary and middle schools stay as they are to save money on busing.

“That’s what I would certainly recommend, especially when we’re talking about maximizing the transportation efficiencies,” said Ron May, the district’s director of administrative services. “It’s not to say that there aren’t other ways that we can look at it.”

All four middle schools start at 8 a.m., and both high schools begin at 8:05 a.m. The early start times allow the district to save money by “double stacking” bus routes.

The district report recommended that high school schedules be adjusted by adding an optional eighth period, making it possible for students to begin their school day after 9 a.m. The recommendation was based on research gathered in a district report on later start times. The report outlined multiple benefits gained by adolescents who get better sleep, many with specific reference to school start times.

For example, the American Academy of Pediatrics makes specific recommendations in its 2014 report, “School Start Times for Adolescents.” The AAP report links better sleep to improved academic performance, as well overall physical and mental health. Because biological shifts in adolescence make it difficult for middle and high school students to fall asleep before 11 p.m., the AAP recommends that secondary schools start at 8:30 a.m. or later.

But in order to also adjust Lawrence’s four middle schools to a later start time, the district report said it would require seven additional buses at an estimated cost of $286,000. School board member Rick Ingram said that given the benefits attributed to later start times, the district and the board should be creative in figuring out the most cost-efficient way to adjust the secondary schedules.

“I think there are ways to do this; other districts have figured out a way to do it that doesn’t bust the budget,” Ingram said.

The district report also included other considerations, such as how later start times would affect after-school sports, activities or jobs. School board member Shannon Kimball said the research regarding the benefits of later start times was compelling, but emphasized that any changes to school schedules should take community feedback into account.

“If we were really going to seriously think about making a change like this, I think that there are a whole lot of other conversations to be had with community groups, parents and students,” Kimball said.

The district report is the result of one of the board’s annual goals for the 2015-2016 school year. Throughout the year, a committee of district- and building-level administrators met to look at the research involving later start times for secondary students and potential effects a schedule change would have on the district.

School board President Vanessa Sanburn agreed later start times were worth more consideration by the board, and said she thinks the topic should be included in the board’s goal-setting discussions for the 2016-17 school year, which begin next month.

In other business, the board:

• Reviewed a committee report about the recognition of former coaches at Lawrence High School. The report recommended public markers as an option for recognition.

• Reviewed a report updating the board on legislative and school finance issues affecting the district. The board voted to authorize the superintendent to make necessary decisions to prepare for the upcoming school year should there be a school closure if the recently passed school finance bill doesn’t pass muster with the Kansas Supreme Court.

• Reviewed a report on the Ci3T program, which addresses the academic, behavioral and social needs of students who are struggling in school. Each school has the program in place and means of monitoring progress.

The next school board meeting will be 7 p.m. July 11 at the district offices, 110 McDonald Drive.