Position Statements and Resolutions on Sleep and School Start Times

Health and Athletic Organizations

American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry. 

• Backs American Academy of Pediatrics call to start middle and high schools no earlier than 8:30 a.m. September 2, 2014.

American Academy of Pediatrics

• Recommends that middle and high schools start no earlier than 8:30 a.m. for the sake of sleep, health, and learning. August 25, 2014.

American Academy of Pediatrics, Florida Chapter

•  Position Statement: Start Schools After 8:00 a.m. January 9, 2012.

American Academy of Pediatrics, Virginia Chapter

• Supports later school start times for all Virginia high schools. February 2013.

American Academy of Pediatrics, Wisconsin Chapter

•  Supports efforts to delay high school start times to 8:00 am or later. August 2013.

American Academy of Sleep Medicine

• Calls on communities, school boards, and educational institutions to implement start times of 8:30 AM or later for middle schools and high schools to ensure that every student arrives at school healthy, awake, alert, and ready to learn." (April 2017)

American Medical Association

• Encourages middle and high schools to start no earlier than 8:30 a.m. for adolescent wellness. June 14, 2016. [Policy Statement]​

American Psychological Association

• "While implementation may be complex, particularly when a change would bring a school’s schedule out of sync with neighboring systems, delaying school start times so that adolescents begin their instructional day later provides numerous benefits to the students and their broader community alike." (2014)

American Sleep Association

•  Middle school and high school should not start before 08:00. A time closer to 09:00 or later would be preferable. February 7, 2016.

American Thoracic Society 

• School start times should be delayed to align with physiological circadian propensity of this age group. June 15, 2015. 

Association of School Psychologists of Pennsylvania (ASPP.

• "Current research and practice related to adolescent circadian rhythm patterns and developmental needs indicates that sleep deprivation resulting from excessively early school start times negatively impacts students’ cognitive functioning, physical health, emotional status, behavior/discipline in the classroom, grades and school performance, school attendance and arrival times, and the likelihood of auto accidents.  In addition, early research suggests that excessively early school start times have greater negative impacts on economically disadvantaged youth.  In view of these research findings, the Pennsylvania Psychological Association supports efforts to educate school administrators and other stakeholders about the risks of adolescent sleep deprivation and to engage in advocacy for moving to later high school start times at the state and local levels." 2015.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

• Recommends that middle and high schools push back start times to 8:30 a.m. or later. August 6, 2015.

Bridgeway Center, Inc.

•  Supports later start times for high schools students in Okaloosa County, FL. September 20, 2014.

Cohasset Board of Health

• Supports movement to change the Cohasset Middle-High School start time to 8:30 a.m. or later. July 9, 2018.

Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference. (CIAC)

• Position statement: switching to later school start times does create a more optimal learning environment and improves student achievement for high school athletes. The CIAC will continue to offer student-athletes the same opportunities for sports participation as it has historically done regardless of individual school district decisions on school starting times. (Section 10.10 on page 221) In April 2018 this position statement was weakened considerably to make start times the perogative of local school systems.

Family Sleep Institute

• Supports later school start times for adolescents and endorses the initiative and efforts of Start School Later.

Florida High School Athletic Association Sports Medicine Advisory Committee

• Supports the 2014 American Academy of Pediatrics policy statement that middle and high schools should not start the school day before 8:30 a.m.

Florida Medical Association

• Supports legislation and endorses all public schools (elementary to high school) begin class at 8:00 am or later. 2012.

Healthy People 2020

• Sleep Health Objective. September 13, 2012.  

Maine Sports Medicine Physicians

•  Letter of Support for AAP Recommendation. October 15, 2015.

Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) 

• Letter of Support for AAP Recommendation. December 2016.

Massachusetts Medical Society 

• Resolution supports starting middle and high schools after 8:30 a.m. December 5, 2015.

Melrose, MA Department of Health 

• Memorandum to School Committee recommending that the start time for middle and high school be moved to no earlier than 8:30 a.m. January 28, 2015.

Mental Health and Recovery Board of Portage County (OH). Letter of Support. December 12, 2011.
MedChi, the Maryland State Medical Society

• Resolution on reforming school schedules. September 12, 1998.

Minnesota Medical Association

•  Sleep Deprivation in Adolescents Educational Campaign (Clause 110.03). First adopted in 1993 following submission by the Minnesota Psychiatric Society and retained at every session since then, this first position statement on school start times "urges local school districts to eliminate early starting hours of school for teenagers.
• 1994 Statement on School Start Time

National Association of School Nurses/Society of Pediatric Nurses

• Consensus Statement on Early School Start Times. March 2015. Supports delaying school start times for middle school and high school students as proposed in the policy statement on School Start Times for Adolescents by the American Academy of Pediatrics (Adolescent Sleep Working Group, 2014).

National Association of Social Workers (NASW) Ohio Chapter

• Endorses the evidence-based recommendations that school start times for adolescents occur after 8:30am. August 25, 2014.

National Sleep Foundation

•  Backgrounder: Later School Start Times.

Philadephia Society of Clinical Psychologists (PSCP)

• "Current research and practice related to adolescent circadian rhythm patterns and developmental needs indicates that sleep deprivation resulting from excessively early school start times negatively impacts students’ cognitive functioning, physical health, emotional status, behavior/discipline in the classroom, grades and school performance, school attendance and arrival times, and the likelihood of auto accidents.  In addition, early research suggests that excessively early school start times have greater negative impacts on economically disadvantaged youth.  In view of these research findings, the Pennsylvania Psychological Association supports efforts to educate school administrators and other stakeholders about the risks of adolescent sleep deprivation and to engage in advocacy for moving to later high school start times at the state and local levels." 2014.

Pennsylvania Psychological Association (PPA)

• "Current research and practice related to adolescent circadian rhythm patterns and developmental needs indicates that sleep deprivation resulting from excessively early school start times negatively impacts students’ cognitive functioning, physical health, emotional status, behavior/discipline in the classroom, grades and school performance, school attendance and arrival times, and the likelihood of auto accidents.  In addition, early research suggests that excessively early school start times have greater negative impacts on economically disadvantaged youth.  In view of these research findings, the Pennsylvania Psychological Association supports efforts to educate school administrators and other stakeholders about the risks of adolescent sleep deprivation and to engage in advocacy for moving to later high school start times at the state and local levels." 2014.

Seattle School Nurses Association

• Passed a resolution calling for secondary schools to start no earlier than 8:30 a.m. January 2014

Society of Behavioral Medicine

• Issued a position statement urging middle and high schools to start classes no earlier than 8:30 a.m. November 2017.
• Statement was endorsed by the National Education Association, the National PTA, the Sleep Research Society, Start School Later, and Parents for Public Schools

St. Charles Health System (Oregon)

• Supports later school start times in Bend-La Pine schoools. (May 2018)

​Texas Department of State Health Services

• Texas School Health Advisory Committee recommends that districts consider delaying the start of high school activities to at least 8:30 a.m. (November 2016)

Educational and Civic Organizations

California State PTA

• Supports SB328, a bill that would require middle and high schools to begin their day no earlier than 8:30 a.m. May 2017.

Education Commission of the States

• Later School Start Times in Adolescence: Time for Change  May 2014.

Fairfax County, VA Board of Education

• Resolution on the goal of the Fairfax County School Board to start high schools after 8 a.m. and to direct the superintendent to identify and report on school divisions with later starting high schools. 2012.

Florida State Parent Teacher Association (PTA)

• Resolution supporting Healthy Sleep in Teens. July 2016

Kent, OH Townhall II

• Letter of Support. December 1, 2010.

League of Women Voters, Tarrant County, TX

• Consensus Statement. May 20, 2015.

League of Women Voters of New Canaan, CT

• Sleep and Adolescent Health Position Statement. June 1, 2006.

Massachusetts Association of School Committees (MASC)

• Resolved that MASC be authorized to petition the legislature and to support legislation, including S.254, which calls for the establishment of a special commission to study the appropriate starting time for students in middle and high school. June 8, 2015.

Middlesex League Superintendents

• Joint Statement on Later School Start Times. Resolves to move all high schools in the league to a start time of 8 a.m. or later by 2018-19. March 2016.

National Education Association

•  Resolution C-5 (Adequate Rest) supports school schedules that follow research-based recommendations regarding the sleep patterns of age groups.

National Parent Teacher Association (PTA)

• Resolution encouraging middle and high schools to start class at times that allow for healthy sleep. June 22, 2017.

Parents Advocacy Network (PAN)

• Resolution to recommend that county schools eliminate mandatory classes before 8:00 a.m. Anne Arundel County, MD. September 27, 2012.

Rootstown Elementary PTA (Rootstown, OH)

• Letter of Support. January 1, 2011.

The Seattle Council of Parent, Teacher and Student Associations

• October 8, 2014.

Seattle Education Association

• Resolution urging Seattle public schools to start high schools at 8:30 a.m. or later. February 10, 2014.

United Latin American Citizens, Arlington (TX) League  (LULAC Council 22320)

• Urges the Arlington Independent School District Board of Trustees to follow the national trend and adopt a start school time policy of no earlier than 8:30 AM for the school district's high schools. September 7, 2016

Vermont National Education Association (VT-NEA)

• Resolution that high schools should start no earlier than 8:30 a.m. (2016)

Virginia Parent Teacher Association

•  Resolution on the Impact of School Start Time on Student Health. 2006.

Washington State Parent Teacher Association

• Alignment of Sleep Requirement for Optimum Health with School Start Times. May 5, 2012.

Government Agencies and Officials

Arne Duncan, U.S. Secretary of Education, Department of Education

• Tweet: ‏@arneduncan 6:41 pm.
• "Common sense to improve student achievement that too few have implemented: let teens sleep more, start school later." August 19, 2013. 

Okaloosa County (FL) Sheriff's Office 

• Early School Start Times. August 21, 2013.

Kent (OH) Police Department

• Healthier and Safer School Start Times in Kent. August 19, 2013.

Portage County (OH) Board of Commissioners

• Letter of Support. February 10, 2011.