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Later High School Start Times Yield Mixed Results, Say Parents, Educators

"Let them sleep," is the rallying call for a nationwide movement to push back high school start times. But parents and educators at high schools that have moved back the first bell report varying results.

Teens need about 8.5 to 9.5 hours of sleep and those who don't get enough rest are at risk for physical and mental health problems, research shows.

But adolescents naturally have a hard time falling asleep before 11 p.m., which can make getting up for school before dawn a challenge. Academic performance can suffer as a result. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in 2015 that most middle and high schools start too early. Many start before 8:30 a.m., which the American Academy of Pediatrics recommended in 2014 as the earliest middle and high schools should begin.

Iowa City Community School District pushed back high school start times this school year mostly to save money on busing and to allow teens to get more sleep, says Gregg Shoultz, principal of West High School in the district.

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Anecdotally, the later start time of 8:50 a.m. has not reduced the number of tardy students by any appreciable amount as officials may have hoped it would, he says.

Keven Wynhoop, principal of Ballard High School in Seattle -- which pushed back its morning start time this school year -- says he would be surprised to see large improvements in either attendance or grade data compared with past years.

The new 8:45 a.m. start time -- it was 7:50 a.m. -- is still extremely early for most teenagers, who sleep well past that time on the weekends, he says. "They are still waking up tired and many are still coming late to first period."

[Find out how parents and teachers can help teens stay awake at school.]

Practices are later for athletes, musicians and actors, he says, which pushes back these students' entire evening and often doesn't result in any additional sleep for these students.

Shoultz' school had to move some extracurricular activities before school because practices were running until 10:30 p.m. due to gym availability.

Shoultz says there are a few positives. It is a more relaxed way to start the day, he says. And there is some ability to get things, like meetings with teachers, in before school.

Virginia mom of three Beth Tudan has seen the effects of later high school start times firsthand. Her middle son, 18-year-old senior Alexander, attended James Madison High School when school started at 7:10 a.m. and now when it starts at 8:10 a.m.

"It's just been great because he has been able to go to bed about the same time, but he gets up about an hour later," says Tudan, who's president-elect of the Fairfax County Council PTA, which advocated for later high school start times. "His grades are higher, his concentration has been better. He's just been happier."

A downside of the later high school start times has been that middle school starts earlier to accommodate busing logistics, she says. Her youngest son, 14-year-old Thomas, an eighth-grader at Thoreau Middle School, wakes up at 5:45 a.m. While the schedule is not ideal, Tudan thinks it was the best compromise -- and middle school is only two years in her district.

[Learn how later high school start times are a challenge for districts.]

"All families endure the middle school start times and are hoping and praying for the high school start time," says Eliza Morss, whose daughters Alexandra, a 16-year-old junior, and freshman Helen, 14, also go to Madison. Another daughter is in elementary school. Her daughters never experienced the early high school start times, but Helen did experience the earlier middle school times.

Her daughters feel like they are getting more rest -- even if they are not.

"My junior, she is going to bed at 1 a.m. every night and she gets up at 6 a.m.," she says, because of a rigorous academic course load. But her daughter is glad she doesn't have to leave the house until about 7:30 a.m. and is happy not to leave in the dark.

"I can't say it's been a game changer," she says. "I'd say it's definitely much better."

Have something of interest to share? Send your news to us at highschoolnotes@usnews.com.

Alexandra Pannoni is an education digital producer at U.S. News. You can follow her on Twitter or email her at apannoni@usnews.com.