Tift to Add 25 Minutes to School Day

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Tuesday, March 25, 2025

Tifton, Georgia

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TIFT SCHOOL DAY

TO ADD 25 MINUTES

By FRANK SAYLES JR.

Tifton Grapevine

Tift County students will be in class for an additional 25 minutes each day when the 2025-2026 school year begins Aug. 1.

The new school start time will be 10 minutes earlier and classes will end 15 minutes later than the current year, adding 25 minutes to the instructional day for all three grade levels, Tift County Schools said in a written release.

"An additional 25 minutes a day will provide teachers and students with 75 additional hours of instructional time over the course of the school year. That is the equivalent of adding nearly two additional weeks to the school year; 25 minutes doesn’t seem like a lot, but it adds up," the school system said.

The move will mostly restore the 30 minutes lost each day when Tift County Schools moved to a two-tiered bus route system after the 2022-2023 school year, separating elementary students from middle and high school students.

With that loss of instructional time, Tift County Schools said "our teachers are feeling a crunch of time trying to get everything in, particularly at the elementary level with the implementation of the new Science of Reading approach and to ensure students who need additional instructional support receive it.

"Time is a resource, just like textbooks; our school system must provide teachers with the resources they need to fulfill their responsibilities and educate our students to their fullest potential."

Adding 25 minutes will also ensure consistency across all grade levels, allowing elementary, middle, and high school teachers to have the same length of the instructional day, the school system said.

Elementary schools will start their days earlier than secondary schools. "Research indicates later start times benefit the academic outcomes of secondary students and are better aligned with the biology behind adolescent sleep," Tift County School said.

Elementary schools will start their day at 7:35 a.m. and end at 3 p.m. Middle schools and the high school will begin at 8:20 a.m. and end at 3:45 p.m.

Reactions on social media have been mixed.

"Well this is absurd! What about the kids that ride the bus and already get on it at 6:15? They will have to get it on it at 5:45," one resident wrote.

But another said: "There is absolutely no way they can make every student's parents happy. There will always be someone who is going to fuss no matter what decisions they make."

For answers to some of the questions about the new schedule, Click Here!

POLICE CHARGE TIFTON WOMAN WITH DISPOSING FETUS IN DUMPSTER

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

The mother of a fetus that was recovered from a Tifton apartment complex dumpster has been charged with disposing the fetus.

Tifton Police on Friday said that Selena Maria Chandler-Scott, 24, of Tifton, has been arrested on one count of concealing the death of another person and one count of throwing away or abandonment of a dead body prohibited. She was taken to Tift County Jail.

Police recovered the fetus from a dumpster at Brookfield Mews Apartments located off Tifton Eldorado Road after responding to a call at approximately 6 a.m. Thursday about a bleeding, unconscious woman at the apartments.

A witness had reported that the woman had placed the fetus in a bag and put it in an outside dumpster. Following an autopsy, authorities determined the woman had experienced a natural miscarriage and that the 19-week-old fetus died of natural causes.

Police said the case is still active.

BERRIEN TEACHER

A FINALIST FOR GA TEACHER OF YEAR

By FRANK SAYLES JR.

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

A Berrien Elementary School teacher is among 10 finalists for the 2026 Georgia Teacher of the Year.

Laura Ray teaches math, science, and social studies to fifth graders at the Nashville school.

School officials said Ray is "dedicated to student success and works one-on-one with her students, helping them reach their full academic potential. Her passion for discovering new ideas and strategies to enhance student achievement motivates her to grow as an educator continuously."

State School Superintendent Richard Woods on Monday announced the full list of finalists for state Teacher of the Year. During the past couple of weeks, Woods surprised each finalist in their classroom with their selection.

“Every one of our 2026 Georgia Teacher of the Year finalists is a reminder of the power, promise, and potential of public education," Woods said. “They are dedicated, creative, talented educators who daily change the lives of students in classrooms across our state.”

The finalists were chosen from a pool of applicants all previously selected as their school district’s Teacher of the Year. The applications were read and scored by a group of reviewers that included past Georgia Teacher of the Year winners and finalists, along with Georgia Department of Education representatives.

All 10 state finalists will meet with a panel of judges for formal interviews and speeches before the Teacher of the Year selection is announced in May.

The 2026 Georgia Teacher of the Year will serve as an ambassador for the teaching profession in Georgia and will be entered in the National Teacher of the Year competition.

Ray is the first Berrien County teacher to be a Top 10 finalist for the honor. She has an associate of science in early childhood education from Georgia Military College and completed her bachelor of science at Georgia Southwestern State University.

She serves in a leadership role as the fifth-grade math department chair in Berrien.

UGA PEANUT RESEARCH PROGRAM AMONG U.S. CONTRACTS CANCELED

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

Funding for a peanut research program at the University of Georgia is among contracts being terminated by the Trump Administration with the recent shutdown of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

UGA's Feed the Future Innovation Lab helps peanut farmers in Georgia and elsewhere strengthen yields and fight crop disease. In 2023, USAID signed a five-year, $15 million grant contract with UGA to continue projects at the lab. Last month, UGA received notice that the Trump Administration was terminating the program.

“Since 2018, the University of Georgia has hosted the Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Peanut. Researchers at this lab have studied the impacts of different temperatures and rainfall patterns on peanut growth, developed new disease-resistant peanut varieties, and created a risk index tool to help U.S. farmers increase yield potential and improve peanut quality,” said U.S. Sen. John Ossoff, D-Ga.

The program said it also helps “alleviate hunger by helping farmers in developing countries grow and profit from healthy peanut crops.”

Ossoff has requested that the Administration restore funding for the lab and supply "detailed reasoning for the State Department’s decision to terminate funding for agricultural research that helps American farmers.”

BROADWAY REVUE WRAPS UP SEASON

FOR ABAC's FIRST TUESDAY SERIES

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College’s annual Broadway Revue returns April 1 as part of the college’s First Tuesday series.

The free concert will begin at 7 p.m. in Howard Auditorium. This is the final First Tuesday concert of the season.

“Students, instructors and the community always look forward to this concert,” said Dr. Jennifer Huang, the head of ABAC’s fine arts department. “This is our 21st year doing The Songs of Broadway, and we’re excited to welcome everyone to what is sure to be a great evening.”

Concert Director Marti Schert said concert-goers can look forward to hearing past and current ABAC music majors perform Broadway classics and selections from more modern shows.

“From musical selections from the musical theatre classics ‘Showboat’ and ‘My Fair Lady’ to the more modern Broadway shows ‘Les Misérables,’ ‘Jekyll and Hyde,’ and Disney favorite ‘Aladdin,’ you will find selections to your liking,” she said. “This year’s review will also include several group numbers which will feature all of our talented performers. We hope to see you there for a night filled with beautiful and enchanting music.”

TIFTON GRAPEVINE'S CAT OF THE WEEK

"Rocky" is ready to win your heart. He's no underdog but a top cat seeking a loving family. Visit Rocky and see other pets available for adoption between 1-6 p.m. Mondays through Fridays at the Tift County Animal Shelter on Highway 125 South, or call 229-382-PETS (7387).

FITZGERALD UNDERWEAR

EXPANDS IN TIFTON

~ MARCH 25, 1971

Fitzgerald Underwear Co. announced a major expansion to its Tifton manufacturing plant on March 25, 1971. Manager Leonard Eastman said the 400-employee ladies panty plant would increase by 35,000 square feet, adding an additional 100 employees immediately and another 100 workers once the expansion was completed. That made the company into Tifton's second-largest industry.