Tenafly High School Start Time May Change

Tenafly High School Start Time May change to 8:35am

In minutes Of The Reorganization & Regular Public Meeting Of The Tenafly Board Of Education that took place January 8, 2015, Superintendent Lynn Trager reported on a research of sleep patterns in teenagers.

Over the past several years some of our administrators have been researching sleep patterns among adolescents, and it has been determined that teenagers (in particular high school students) benefit academically from a later school starting time. Learning patterns of younger children differ than those of adolescents. The brain development is such that teenagers go to sleep later and wake up later. Many other factors exists that influence times. The Board has authorized the administration to form a committee to explore the possibility of changing the starting time of the high school, and possibly the middle school, based on the research learned so far and including many other factors that come into play specifically here in Tenafly. All the issues and concerns will be discussed for possible solutions and possible recommendations.

During a Board of Education meeting on March 3, Trager updated trustees on the Starting Time Committee’s progress regarding if beginning school later would be the right move for the district.

“The committee met for the first time February 5 and the purpose of it is to see if we can make adjustments that are more inline with research,” Trager said…….
Research also shows that students achieve at higher levels when school begins later, Trager said. “High school begins at 7:55, so even if we move it to 8:30 or 8:35 it might make a significant difference according to research,” Trager said. “Emotional health also improves with later start times.”

Click here for the Board of Education Minutes 

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