• TESD School Start Timesalarm clock

    One of the goals for the 2018-2019 school year was to assess the impact of potential strategies for addressing adolescent sleep needs, including the implications for school start times.

    This web page includes a history and work on the school start time initiative as well as presentation materials and resources. There are links available on the left side of this page for additional details. 

    T/E School Board Approves New School Start Times for 2019-2020 School Year

    At its regular meeting on April 22, 2019, the Tredyffrin/Easttown School Board approved new school start times for the 2019-2020 school year.

    New school start and end times for the 2019-2020 school year:

    High School: 7:50 AM - 2:50 PM 
    Middle Schools: 8:27 AM - 3:10 PM 
    Elementary Schools: 9:10 AM - 3:45 PM 

    Throughout the 2018-2019 school year, there have been discussions about adjusting school start times at a number of Education Committee meetings and regular School Board meetings. The District carried out a survey to obtain feedback from current T/E parents, middle/high school students and staff members on the new 2019-2020 school start time option. For additional information on the history of the school start times decision and resources on adolescent sleep needs, please see links to the left and information below. Between now and the start of the 2019-2020 school year, the District will be working on the adjustments needed for a smooth transition to the new start times. In the coming months, information about the new start times will be shared with parents through targeted communication from the schools and the District. 

    Education Committee Recommends 2019-2020 Start Time Option for Full Board Consideration on April 22

    Over the past two years, the Board and administration have been reviewing research regarding the science of adolescent sleep and the benefits of later school start times.

    In September 2018, the Board approved a goal to assess the impact of potential strategies for addressing adolescent sleep needs, including the implications for school start times. Throughout the school year, the School Board has held numerous public discussions about options for later school start times, and in February 2019, the Board Education Committee identified an option that could be implemented for the 2019-2020 school year. In March, the District conducted a survey of current T/E parents, middle/high school students and staff members to collect feedback on the 2019-2020 start time option. Click here for the start times survey results.

    At its April 11 meeting, the Board Education Committee presented the start times survey results and continued its discussion on the 2019-2020 start time option. The Board Education Committee recommended the 2019-2020 start time option for full Board consideration at the April 22 Regular School Board Meeting. The Board meeting will be held at 7:30 pm at Conestoga High School, 200 Irish Road in Berwyn. There will be an opportunity for public comment at the meeting.

    Option for new school start and end times for the 2019-2020 school year
    High School: 7:50 AM - 2:50 PM
    Middle Schools: 8:27 AM - 3:10 PM
    Elementary Schools: 9:10 AM - 3:45 PM

    Current start and end times
    High School: 7:20 AM - 2:20 PM
    Middle Schools: 7:50 AM - 2:33 PM
    Elementary Schools: 8:45 AM - 3:20 PM

    School Start Times Survey Results

    The District is evaluating whether or not to make a change to school start times for the 2019-2020 school year. During the month of March, the District carried out a survey to obtain feedback from current T/E parents, middle/high school students and staff members on the 2019-2020 school start time option listed below. The District received over 7,000 responses to the survey.

    The primary purpose of the survey was to collect feedback on whether members of the target audiences support the 2019-2020 school start time option and to assess the impact of the start time option on parents, students and staff. While the survey data was verified and carefully analyzed by the District’s technology team, the survey results were not intended to meet scientific survey research protocols.

    The survey results will be presented and discussed at the Education Committee Meeting on April 11 at 7:00 pm in the Tredyffrin/Easttown Administration Offices. The Education Committee will determine whether there will be a recommendation for full Board consideration at the April 22 Regular School Board Meeting.

    Click here for the survey results

    Click here for a summary of open comments grouped by theme

    Click here for the 2019-2020 School Start Time Survey– Parents
    Click here for the 2019-2020 School Start Time Survey– Students
    Click here for the 2019-2020 School Start Time Survey – Staff

    Option for new school start and end times for the 2019-2020 school year

    High School: 7:50 AM - 2:50 PM
    Middle Schools: 8:27 AM - 3:10 PM
    Elementary Schools: 9:10 AM - 3:45 PM

    Current start and end times

    High School: 7:20 AM - 2:20 PM
    Middle Schools: 7:50 AM - 2:33 PM
    Elementary Schools: 8:45 AM - 3:20 PM

    March 21, 2019 School Start Times Update - Survey Complete

    On March 8, the District launched a survey to obtain feedback on the 2019-2020 school start time option. Current T/E parents, middle/high school students and staff members had the opportunity to take the survey, which closed on March 18. The District received over 7,000 responses to the survey. District staff are in the process of compiling and analyzing the survey data. Survey results will be posted when the analysis is complete and will be discussed at the April 11, 2019 School Board Education Committee meeting, which will be held at 7:00 pm in the Tredyffrin/Easttown Administration Offices. The public is welcomed to attend.

    One of the District’s goals for the 2018-2019 school year is to assess the impact of potential strategies for addressing adolescent sleep needs, including the implications for school start times. At the February 14, 2019 Education Committee meeting, the Committee recommended moving forward with next steps on an option that would adjust school start times beginning in August 2019. The administration presented information on this option for later school start times at the February 25, 2019 Regular School Board meeting.

    Option for new school start and end times for the 2019-2020 school year 

    High School: 7:50 AM - 2:50 PM
    Middle Schools: 8:27 AM - 3:10 PM
    Elementary Schools: 9:10 AM - 3:45 PM 

    Current start and end times

    High School: 7:20 AM - 2:20 PM
    Middle Schools: 7:50 AM - 2:33 PM
    Elementary Schools: 8:45 AM - 3:20 PM 

    For additional resources on adolescent sleep and later school start times, visit www.tesd.net/starttimes and select “Resources” on the left side of the page.

     March 7, 2019 School Start Times Update

    One of the District’s goals for the 2018-2019 school year is to assess the impact of potential strategies for addressing adolescent sleep needs, including the implications for school start times. At the February 14, 2019 Education Committee meeting, the Committee recommended moving forward with next steps on an option that would adjust school start times beginning in August 2019. The administration presented information on this option for later school start times at the February 25, 2019 Regular School Board meeting. Members of the public had the opportunity to make public comment and share feedback.

    Option for new school start and end times for the 2019-2020 school year

    • High School: 7:50 AM - 2:50 PM
    • Middle Schools: 8:27 AM - 3:10 PM
    • Elementary Schools: 9:10 AM - 3:45 PM

    Current start and end times 

    • High School: 7:20 AM - 2:20 PM
    • Middle Schools: 7:50 AM - 2:33 PM
    • Elementary Schools: 8:45 AM - 3:20 PM

    The District will launch a survey to obtain feedback from T/E parents, middle school and high school students, and T/E staff members on the 2019-2020 school start time option. The survey will be open from March 8, 2019 through March 18, 2019. The District sent parents a series of emails with details about the survey. The survey results will be discussed at the April 11, 2019 Education Committee meeting, which will be held at 7:00 pm in the Tredyffrin/Easttown Administration Offices. The public is welcomed to attend. For additional resources on adolescent sleep and later school start times, visit www.tesd.net/starttimes and select “Resources” on the left side of the page.

    Education Committee Recommends Moving Forward with Next Steps on School Start Time Option at February 14, 2019 Meeting

    The School Board Education Committee met on February 14, 2019 to continue its discussion on adjusting school start times. The Committee recommended moving forward with next steps on one option that would adjust school start times beginning in August 2019. The next phase in the process includes gathering feedback to assess the impact of the proposed change on students, parents and staff.

     Proposal for new school start and end times for the 2019-2020 school year

    • High School: 7:50 AM - 2:50 PM
    • Middle Schools: 8:27 AM - 3:10 PM
    • Elementary Schools: 9:10 AM - 3:45 PM

    Current start and end times

    • High School: 7:20 AM - 2:20 PM
    • Middle Schools: 7:50 AM - 2:33 PM
    • Elementary Schools: 8:45 AM - 3:20 PM

    There will be a public presentation and priority discussion on the school start time option at the February 25, 2019 Regular School Board Meeting. No vote will be taken at the meeting. Additional information about next steps and opportunities for members of the school community to provide feedback on school start times will be shared in the coming weeks. 

    February 14, 2019: School Board Education Committee to Continue Discussing Scenario to Adjust School Start Times

    The School Board Education Committee will meet on February 14, 2019 at 7:00 pm in the Tredyffrin/Easttown Administration Offices, 940 West Valley Road, Suite 1700, in Wayne to discuss a scenario that would adjust school start times for the 2019-2020 school year. 

    Current start and end times:

    • Conestoga High School = 7:20 AM - 2:20 PM
    • Middle Schools = 7:50 AM - 2:33 PM
    • Elementary Schools = 8:45 AM - 3:20 PM

    Scenario for new school start and end times for the 2019-2020 school year to be discussed on February 14:

    • High School: 7:50 AM - 2:50 PM
    • Middle Schools: 8:27 AM - 3:10 PM
    • Elementary Schools: 9:10 AM - 3:45 PM

    Options that would provide an even later start time and change the parameters could be considered for 2020-2021 and beyond.

    The Education Committee will continue its discussion on school start time options at the February 14 meeting. No final decision will be made about changing start times at this meeting.  There are public comment periods at all public Board meetings. Parents, students or staff members may also submit feedback on school start times by email at starttimes@tesd.net.

    January 10, 2019: School Board Education Committee Discusses Scenario for Adjusting School Start Times

    During the 2016-2017 school year, the Board and administration began reviewing research regarding the science of adolescent sleep and the benefits of later school start times. In September 2018, the Board approved a goal to assess the impact of potential strategies for addressing adolescent sleep needs, including the implications for school start times. For additional resources on adolescent sleep and later school start times, visit www.tesd.net/starttimes and select “Resources” on the left side of the page.

    On Thursday, January 10, 2019, the School Board Education Committee met to discuss options for adjusting school start times. Click here for the presentation slides from the January Education Committee Meeting. The Committee began by reviewing current start times and end times at each level. The current times are listed below.

    • Conestoga High School = 7:20 AM – 2:20 PM
    • Middle Schools = 7:50 AM – 2:33 PM
    • Elementary Schools = 8:45 AM – 3:20 PM

    The Committee also reviewed assumptions to begin the school start time discussions. Changing any of these assumptions would delay the implementation of new school start times to beyond the 2019-2020 school year.

    • Maintain the current number of instructional minutes each day
    • Use a defined Start Time and Ending Time range:
      • 7:45 AM as the earliest possible starting time
      • 3:45 PM as the latest possible ending time
    • Continue to have 3 tiers for busing
    • Maintain current start time order (High School, Middle, Elementary)
    • Keep the Start Time and End Time the same by level
      • All elementary schools begin and end at the same time
      • Both middle schools begin and end at the same time

    The Committee identified one scenario that conformed to the parameters discussed at the previous Education Committee meeting and could be implemented for the 2019-2020 school year:

    • High School: 7:50 AM - 2:50 PM
    • Middle Schools: 8:27 AM - 3:10 PM
    • Elementary Schools: 9:10 AM - 3:45 PM

    Options that would provide an even later start time and change the parameters could be considered for 2020-2021 and beyond.

    No vote was taken on this school start time scenario at the January 10 meeting. The Committee will provide opportunities to gather feedback from parents, students and staff before any final decision is made.

    The Education Committee will continue its discussion on school start time options and will present questions and answers on the proposed scenario at the February 14, 2019 meeting at 7:00 pm in the Tredyffrin/Easttown Administration Offices. There are public comment periods at all public Board meetings. Parents, students or staff members may also submit feedback on school start times by email at starttimes@tesd.net. A special School Start Times website has been created and includes updates, presentation materials and meeting dates: www.tesd.net/starttimes.