Academy District 20 families have this weekend to finalize their back-to-school preparations. School starts Monday, August 17 — but not for everyone at once.

Here's who starts when, what to check before the first day, and how D20's timeline compares to the other major Colorado Springs districts.

How D20 Compares to D11 and D49

D20 is the last of the three major El Paso County districts to start the 2026–27 school year. District 11 opened its doors to all students on Wednesday, August 12, and students have already been in class for two days. District 49 started even earlier — kindergarteners, 6th graders, and 9th graders began on August 3, with all other students following on August 4.

If your family has students in multiple districts, that means your D49 and D11 students are already in their school routines while D20 students are finishing up their last summer days.

What to Do This Weekend

With two to three days left before school starts, here are the most important things to check off before Monday:

• Bus routes: Log in to AcademyD20.org to find your student's specific bus stop and pickup time. Routes sometimes shift year to year, so don't assume last year's schedule is the same.
• Room assignments: If the school has posted classroom or homeroom assignments, confirm which room your student is headed to on the first day. This is especially relevant for students starting a new school (6th graders and 9th graders on Aug. 17).
• Supply lists: Most school supply lists for D20 schools are posted on individual school pages within AcademyD20.org. If you haven't picked up supplies yet, weekend mornings before the afternoon storms are a good window.
• Schedules: High school students starting Tuesday (Aug. 18) should confirm their class schedules are finalized. Middle schoolers starting Monday (6th graders) should check locker assignments if they've been posted.
• Morning routines: A trial run of the morning routine — alarm times, breakfast timing, bag packing — can make Monday feel much smoother, especially for younger students.

What's Next

D20 families: the full district website at AcademyD20.org is your primary resource for school-specific information. Individual school websites linked from the district page carry supply lists, teacher assignments, and school-specific first-day details. If you have questions about a specific school's setup that you can't find online, reaching out to the school office this week will be more reliable than waiting for Monday.

For D11 and D49 families, your students are already in the routine. For D20, the countdown is almost over — two more days.