Dive Brief:

• Maryland's Montgomery County School Board is considering a later start time, but casting a wide net in its search for a change that isn't too expensive.
• In 2013, Montgomery County Superintendent Joshua Starr commissioned staff and stakeholders to create a “Bell Times Work Group,” tasked with determining the potential benefits of a later start time. Despite compelling evidence for why school should start later, the plan was ultimately placed on hold due to an estimated cost of $21 million.
• The board is currently trying to find a way to make the change for under $10 million.

Dive Insight:

Transportation is the primary issue when it comes to cost increases with a new schedule. According to CBS DC, Patricia O’Neill, chair of the board of education, said the only cost-effective plan currently on the table would be to push school back by 20 or 35 minutes. Anything more would be too expensive.

Montgomery County is not the first district to consider this change. A recent vote in nearby Fairfax County, VA, resulted in high school class start times being pushed back to 8 a.m. The decision was based on research by the Children’s National Medical Center’s Division of Sleep Medicine, which found that students were less likely to be depressed and more likely to be alert in class if they had more time to sleep.