Our view: Start times head in right direction for Beaufort County schools

A later start to the school day for Beaufort County high school students may be just what the doctor ordered.

It’s a prescription for students to arrive on time, with clearer focus, and perhaps even a bite of two of breakfast under their belts.

Ten Beaufort County Board of Education members bought into it Tuesday night in voting for the change recommended by Superintendent Jeff Moss.

If the change seems sudden, it is. We’re aware of very little public input, feedback or debate prior to the vote.

Then again, if the change seems like it has taken forever, it has. This change was suggested by local parents well more than a decade ago. Parents know their teenagers, especially the torture of getting them out of bed in the morning. It was especially bad before Bluffton High School opened, when students from all over Okatie had to arrive at Hilton Head High by 7:30 a.m.

Also, the schools have been edging this way for years. A pilot program at Hilton Head High that has shifted the start time from 7:45 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. has been well-received. That will not change, but Tuesday’s vote change hours at other schools in the county next school year to about 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. for middle school and high school and about 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. for elementary schools.

We trust that principals had a voice in it, as well as School Improvement Councils.

But we appreciate the bold move by Moss and his willingness to try new things.

Frankly, the notion has been talked about a lot, and the pros outweigh the cons.

Some people are concerned about what it means to sports and other extracurricular activities. That is an important part of school, but it takes a back seat to academics.

People are concerned about its impact on afternoon jobs, and afternoon daycare that high schoolers provide for younger siblings. Again, that takes a back seat to academics.

Arguments for the change come from many quarters, based on a lot of study. No, we are not the first people to be puzzled by the sleep habits of teenagers.

In 2014, the American Academy of Pediatrics adopted a policy statement on school start times for adolescents. It urges schools to do what our school board has done this week.

“Chronic sleep loss in children and adolescents is one of the most common — and easily fixable — public health issues in the U.S. today,” writes its lead author, pediatrician Judith Owens.

Of course, more factors are involved than school-start times. The pediatricians urge parents to enforce a “media curfew” on weeknights.

Dr. Owens concludes:

“By advocating for later school start times for middle and high school students, the AAP is both promoting the compelling scientific evidence that supports school start time delay as an important public health measure, and providing support and encouragement to those school districts around the country contemplating that change.”

So, the Beaufort County School District is not lurching into the dark unknown. It is waking up and smelling the coffee.

This story was originally published March 17, 2016 at 8:00 PM with the headline "Our view: Start times head in right direction for Beaufort County schools."