Later Start Times Won't Fix What's Broken in Our Schools

A new bill would divert School Safety and Mental Health Grant funds to later start times. But research shows limited academic gains—and Governor Mifflin, ranked 15th of 18 districts in Berks County, needs instructional reform, not schedule changes.

And They Won't Fix Governor Mifflin A new bill in Harrisburg would allow Pennsylvania school districts to use School Safety and Mental Health Grant funds to implement later school start times for secondary students. Supporters cite well-established research showing teenagers are sleep deprived and that later starts may improve alertness, mental health, and safety. The science deserves respect. The policy choice does not. Redirecting limited safety and mental health grant funding toward schedule changes is a misallocation of resources—especially for districts already struggling academically. THE CORE PROBLEM ISN'T THE CLOCK Later start times are often presented as an academic solution, yet the evidence does not show consistent academic improvement. Meta-analyses confirm that moving school start times later generally increases sleep duration and reduces negative mood and sleepiness in adolescents, but research on academic achievement is mixed and often negligible . Even influential federal assessments acknowledge that while later start times may improve attendance and wellbeing, the evidence on standardized test scores is far from conclusive. Pennsylvania's most urgent education challenge is not student fatigue. It is CHRONIC UNDERPERFORMANCE in foundational skills, especially literacy and mathematics. GOVERNOR MIFFLIN IS A CASE STUDY IN MISPLACED PRIORITIES For Governor Mifflin School District , later start times would not address the core issues facing students. Academic Ranking 15th out of 18 SCHOOL DISTRICTS IN BERKS COUNTY This reflects longstanding challenges in proficiency, not sleep . Shifting start times will not: Improve early literacy outcomes Strengthen math instruction Close achievement gaps Raise districtwide proficiency levels What Governor Mifflin needs is INSTRUCTIONAL REFORM, ACCOUNTABILITY, AND TARGETED ACADEMIC INTERVENTION — not a schedule adjustment that leaves classroom quality unchanged. When a district is performing near the bottom locally, policy focus must be ruthless about priorities. Later bells may feel compassionate, but they do not teach children to read, write, or calculate . WHAT ACTUALLY WORKS: THE MISSISSIPPI EXAMPLE The "Mississippi Miracle" has been widely cited as evidence that disciplined instructional reform can produce real academic gains. Mississippi's improvement in reading has been linked to long-term investments in: Science of reading–based instruction , centering on phonics, phonemic awareness, vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension Intensive teacher training and coaching Literacy interventions and early assessment Policies like the Literacy-Based Promotion Act , which tied promotion to reading proficiency Expanded teacher coaches and structured support for struggling readers By aligning instruction with evidence and holding schools accountable, Mississippi saw significant increases in literacy and math scores on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) . The broader takeaway: Instructional quality and evidence-based reforms are correlated with measurable academic improvement. OPPORTUNITY COST MATTERS School Safety and Mental Health Grant funds were not designed to subsidize logistical overhauls. Every dollar used to rework bus schedules or after-school programs is a dollar not spent on : School security upgrades Counselors and mental health services Literacy specialists and math intervention Evidence-based tutoring programs If districts wish to pursue later start times, they should do so transparently through local budgeting—not by diverting funds from programs meant to address more urgent needs. POLICY SHOULD FOLLOW RESULTS, NOT TRENDS Education policy must be driven by outcomes, not intentions. The lesson from Mississippi is clear: strong instruction, accountability, and early intervention work . Cosmetic changes like shifting start times do not fix the core issue of academic underperformance . For districts like Governor Mifflin—already ranked near the bottom in Berks County—later start times would not fix what is broken. They would simply rearrange the day while leaving academic failure untouched. Pennsylvania doesn't need to wake students up later. IT NEEDS TO TEACH THEM BETTER. SOURCES: CBS Pittsburgh — Pennsylvania bill would let districts use grant funds for later start times WGAL — Pennsylvania high schools may see later start times with new bill PubMed Central — Meta-analysis: later start times linked with longer sleep and better mood but limited academic evidence Congress.gov — Federal legislative acknowledgement of mixed outcomes on academic performance Education Week — Science of reading instruction essential to Mississippi's turnaround Phys.org — Details on Mississippi reforms and NAEP gains Wikipedia — Mississippi's continued improvement on national assessment Mississippi Today — Critiques and context on Mississippi improvement