Eastwick School District Proposes Later Start Times for Middle and High Schools
The Eastwick School District is weighing a plan to move the start of the school day for older students from 7:45 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. beginning next fall, citing research on adolescent sleep and student attention.
The recommendation comes from a committee of teachers, parents, and administrators that spent the past year studying schedules in comparable valley districts. Their report argues that a later start could improve attendance and morning performance, but it acknowledges the change would not be simple to carry out.
The trade-offs on the table
- Bus routes would need to be rebuilt, since elementary and secondary schools currently share fleets
- After-school sports and activities would end later, affecting practice fields and part-time jobs
- Families relying on older students for afternoon childcare would need to adjust
The district’s transportation office estimates that keeping the current single-tier busing would require additional drivers, a cost the committee did not fully price out. An alternative would stagger elementary start times earlier, which drew concern from parents of younger children.
A public forum on the proposal is planned before the board takes any action, and the district has invited written comment from families in the meantime.
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Further reading: School start times
