The Shadow
LOW MOOR, Va. (VR) — Sharon Elementary School and Mountain View Elementary School will begin classes five minutes earlier for the remainder of the 2024-2025 school year. The change was made to recover lost instructional time due to winter events. These schools have missed slightly more instructional time than Callaghan Elementary School and Jeter-Watson Elementary School.
To recover this time for Sharon and Mountain View, the Alleghany Highlands School Board voted at the March 17 meeting to begin the instructional day five minutes earlier beginning Wednesday, March 19. Student families were notified of the change by Alleghany Highlands Public Schools.
The change has simply shifted the time the “tardy bell” rings at school. Breakfast has continued to be served, and bus schedules are not affected. Classes now begin at 8:05 a.m. instead of 8:10 a.m.
“We continue to be eager to support our students with instructional time, and we want to meet all requirements,” Principal Mallory Thompson of Mountain View Elementary School said. “We are glad to be seeing our students in class a few minutes longer, too!”
“Changing the start time of each day for the rest of the year will help ensure we do not have to extend the school year unless there are further disruptions. This slight change should make arrangements easy for families. Drop off times, bus schedules and dismissal times will stay the same,” Principal Chris Jones of Sharon Elementary School said.
Kim Halterman and Melinda Snead-Johnson, leaders of AHPS, encourage everyone interested in Alleghany Highlands Public Schools to follow official AHPS communications including the Facebook page AHPublicSchools.
About Alleghany Highlands Public Schools
The Alleghany Highlands Public Schools Division was created through the July 1, 2022, merger of Allegany County Public Schools, Covington City Public Schools, and Jackson River Technical Center. The school division, which serves approximately 2,700 students, is jointly funded by Alleghany County and the City of Covington.
School division news and events are regularly posted on Facebook at AHPublicSchools.
The division website can be visited at ahps.k12.va.us. School starts for students on Aug. 13 for the school year 2025-2026.
