Georgetown ISD makes changes to bus, bell schedule for 2026-27 school year

GEORGETOWN, Texas - The Georgetown ISD school board approved several decisions to help strengthen their financial stability in the long run. 

According to the district, the following decisions were made:

• Delaying the opening of two new campuses
• Adopting a new bus and bell schedule
• Approving the academic calendar for the 2026–27 school year

What we know:

Delayed school openings

The opening of Jessie Daniel Ames Elementary School, the district's 12th elementary school, and an unnamed middle school, the district's fifth, have been delayed until 2027.

"While bond funds pay for construction, they do not cover the operational costs of opening a new campus, including staffing," Superintendent Devin Padavil said. "With slowing enrollment projections for the year ahead, it is not fiscally prudent to invest in the overhead of additional staff and resources at this time. Delaying the opening of two schools for one year is a fiscally conservative and responsible decision that allows us to preserve the ability to fund compensation increases for staff and maintain a balanced budget."

The district's fourth high school is currently under construction and is scheduled to open in 2028.

New bus and bell schedule

There will be a new bus and bell schedule for the 2026-27 school year. 

The new schedule will include earlier start times for elementary and high schools. For middle schools, the schedules were moved to a later time. 

The new schedule can be found here.

New academic calendar for 2026-27

The calendar includes an earlier start to the school year on Wednesday, August 19.

For more details, click here.