Start times changed at several Hamilton County public schools

In this 2018 staff file photo, two children cross Gann Road in Middle Valley as they exit their school bus.
In this 2018 staff file photo, two children cross Gann Road in Middle Valley as they exit their school bus.

Students at four Hamilton County public schools will be able to go to classes a bit later this upcoming school year, but students at two other high schools will be waking up earlier.

Start times for Signal Mountain's three schools - Signal Mountain Middle/High School, Nolan and Thrasher elementary schools - and Brainerd High School have been pushed back as much as an hour.

Schools with new start times for the 2019-2020 school year:

> Signal Mountain Middle/High School: 7:45 a.m. - 2:45 p.m. > Thrasher Elementary: 8:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. > Nolan Elementary: 8:55 a.m. - 3:55 p.m. > Brainerd High: 8:15 a.m. - 3:15 p.m. > East Ridge Middle: 7:20 a.m. - 2:20 p.m. > Sequoyah High: 7:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. > Harrison Bay Center: 7:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. > Howard Connect Academy: 8 a.m. - 3 p.m.But the first bell will ring much earlier at East Ridge Middle and Sequoyah High School."Community interest in later start times at Brainerd High and Signal Mountain Middle/High was instrumental in several of the changes in school start times for next school year," said Tim Hensley, spokesman for the school district, in a news release. "Addressing changes at the two high schools resulted in minor adjustments at other schools because of connections related to bus transportation and school program schedules."The earlier start times for Sequoyah High School and the renovated Harrison Bay Center will allow for the schools to offer morning and afternoon sessions for students, as well as midday bus routes."Teens will be able to take advantage of the unique career programs at Sequoyah while continuing to be enrolled at their home school and have the opportunity to participate in athletic programs and band," said Neelie Parker, executive director of the North River Learning Community for the district.Though the schools' start times will be 7:30 a.m., which is a jump from Sequoyah's 9 a.m. start time for the 2018-2019 school year, several high schools in the district start classes each day much earlier.Most middle and high schools in the county ring their first bells at 7:15 a.m.Some think that is too early and more schools should be changing their start times."The reason why I am so passionate about this is it's just for the kids. The research that's come out, especially in the past several years, all points to later start times to boost student success," said David Tad Russell, a teacher at the new Howard Connect Academy. "The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends a start time of 8:30 for middle and high school students."Russell taught at Soddy-Daisy Middle School for four years and said that school getting out later in the day thanks to later start times can increase student access to afterschool extracurricular activities.He said several of the district's announced changes were a step in the right direction, but East Ridge Middle's earlier start time is a step backward.Research shows that adolescents and teenagers do better in school when they are able to sleep in.In 2014, the American Academy of Pediatrics reported insufficient sleep in adolescents as an important public health issue that significantly affects their health, safety and academic success, and began recommending an ideal start time.That same year, though, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that 93% of high schools and 83% of middle schools in the U.S. started before 8:30 a.m.School start times on Signal Mountain have been an ongoing topic of debate among parents and community members and were a hot-button issue when the town of Signal Mountain was considering breaking away from the Hamilton County school district in 2017.Start times will be pushed back only 10-20 minutes, from 7:25 to 7:45 a.m. at Signal's middle/high school, 8:10 to 8:30 a.m. at Thrasher and 8:45 to 8:55 a.m. at Nolan Elementary.The change in times was made possible thanks to adjusted bus routes, including an added bus route, said school board member Kathy Lennon, who represents Signal Mountain as part of District 2."This is really good for Signal Mountain and Brainerd, hopefully it's something that we can expand across the district," Lennon said. "We had to add another bus, and that's $70,000, so for Hamilton County Schools to do that and show Signal Mountain parents that we are listening to them is great."Marion Wagner has taught French and English at Signal Mountain Middle/High School for 7 years. She also has a young child she has to drop off at daycare each morning. She said she was thankful for the changes as both a teacher and a parent."My students definitely struggled with the super-early start time. They were so involved with sporting events, play practices, and music rehearsals late into the evening that they were struggling just to get enough sleep to be alert by that first 7:25 a.m. class," Wagner said. "As a teacher, I am hopeful that this will help just a little with their time management skills. I know it is just 20 minutes, but it is 20 minutes of more productive time in class."Wagner also addressed the traffic issues that many Signal Mountain families have cited as a frustration when it comes to getting through the drop-off and pick-up lines at Nolan Elementary, which shares a driveway with the secondary school."As any Signal Mountain driver knows, if you don't get into the car line by 6:55, your 5 minute drive could easily turn into 15 minutes. There were days when it might have been quicker to simply walk from school to school," Wagner said.Lennon and Russell agreed they hope the bell schedule changes will expand across the district.Contact staff writer Meghan Mangrum at mmangrum@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6592. Follow her on Twitter @memangrum.

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