An informal survey indicates that western Prince William County residents would most likely support an initiative to push back the start times of Prince William County high schools.
According to a survey conducted by Bristow Beat, 70 percent of respondents would favor starting times later than the current 7:20-7:30 a.m. at county high schools.
Out of 591 responses, 53 percent (313) would like Prince William County high schools to start on or about 8 a.m., 17 percent (100) would like high schools to start on or about 9 a.m. and 30 percent (178) would like the current start times to remain the same.
"The school systems that do this have had lots of success and numerous studies show it is better for the students," Anna Maranto commented on Bristow Beat's Facebook page.
The Fairfax County School Board voted 11-1 last week to push back high school start times to after 8 a.m.
In their decision, they considered an August 2014 statement from the American Academy of Pediatrics that recommended later start times to align school schedules with the biological sleep rhythms of adolescents. They cited research that indicates sleep-deprived students have shortened attention spans, slower reaction time, lower test scores, poorer grades, increased rates of depression and higher risk of car crashes.
High school students in Loudoun County currently begin their first classes around 9 a.m.
"This was never an issue in Loudoun where I graduated; we were in our seats at 8:45, and class started promptly after announcements," Erin Lee, who currently attends at Liberty University, said. "We were out of school by 3:50 p.m. unless you had after-school activities or detention."
However, not all residents think Loudoun's system was beneficial.
"It didn't help for several reasons. I went to school in Fairfax, moved to Loudoun, and it was a culture shock," Lisa Carter said. "I used to have time to go home, do homework, chill with friends before work or just work, which I needed. When I moved to Loudoun, I only had one choice and didn't get home until after 4-5 p.m."
Others worry about after students' after school commitments
"Going to school later means the kids get out later, which means that they have less time for extra-curriculars, homework, jobs, etc. There are only a finite number of hours in the day," Ryan Sybertz said. "Kids stay up late anyway. If kids want to maximize the amount of sleep they get, they first need to learn time-management skills."
Residents also felt that a new school schedule would negatively impact morning and afternoon commuter traffic in the county.
"The kids will just stay up later and not necessarily sleep later to counteract that; it will also negatively impact traffic both ways and just be all around awful," Kaiylyn Faile said.
Bristow resident Vanessa Bauer agrees with the concept but considers buses might be an issue.
"If they could make it possible logistically with buses, I say yes," she said. "Elementary should be the earliest IMO. It is easier to put an elementary-aged child to bed early, and it would be easier to get them to after school activities if they got out earlier."
Prince William County Schools bus driver Emily LePore of Bristow commented that she is currently picking up students as early as 5:39 a.m.
"I drive a school bus, and due to overcrowding and driver shortage, I have had my first bus stop pick up time range from 5:39 a.m. to 6:10 a.m. over the past few years! Think about what time those students are getting up to get ready for school," she said.
While some opponents to a change in school start times suggest that students should adjust their sleep schedules to accommodate the eight hours that health professionals suggest are optimal for teenagers, Amber Parnell is concerned that this is not practical for students.
"I'm kind of blown away by people saying 'just go to bed earlier.' My 13-year-old goes to bed at 9:30 p.m. now to get a proper night's sleep for her middle school start time of 8 a.m. Are you suggesting next year I should have her to bed at 8:30 p.m.?" she said. "The fact is that we set these start times not because it was what was best for the child's education but rather for what was best for everyone else...I hope that PWC implements a change."
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