Beginning next fall, school start times in Norfolk could be pushed back as far as 90 minutes at some schools.
During a meeting Wednesday, the school board said the research is overwhelming, a later school day leads to happy, healthier, more productive students.
“One of the things that leads to the challenges high school students have is their lack of sleep,” said Tracy Richter.
Richter, a consultant for Norfolk Public Schools, said the answer is simple, just push back the start times. More than 1,000 high schools nationwide have already done it.
“You could read for about a year on research on this stuff is actually what I found out, I got so deep into it, I couldn’t get out of it,” said Richter.
Richter says students’ health will be the first thing to improve.
“Inadequate sleep leads to higher levels of self-reported depression, you see caffeinated drink consumption is higher, you see that the use of tobacco products is higher,” said Richter.
Richter said later start times also lead to better grades.
“There are more studies out there that show that there is an increased rate in graduation rates, attendance rates, lack of tardiness,” said Richter.
During Wednesday’s meeting, school board members talked about pushing back high school start times as much as 90 minutes, to as late as 9 a.m.
Later start times at the elementary level are also on the table.
“Concern of early morning darkness and safety, that’s always going to be there and we know that,” said Richter.
However, later start times do present challenges, for instance when it comes to after-school outdoor sports. During parts of the year, teams are going to lose precious daylight. In the end, the school board said the pros outweigh the cons.
“It seems like the research, the background research, is pretty overwhelming in favor of later start times,” said Board member Adale Martin.
Next month, the school district plans to hold a series of public meetings where they will introduce three or four different options to parents, students, and faculty when it comes to possible new start times.
“It is a matter of being completely transparent with our families, to let them know this is what we are considering, it is in the best interest of kids, we are always going to do what’s in the best interest of our kids, but we want to bring you into the conversation,” said School Board Chair Noelle Gabriel.
The school board could be voting on these new start times as early as February and if they are approved they would go into effect the fall of 2019.