By this time many students are aware of the new school times that may be set next year. The most prominent argument about these new times is that it will allow more time to sleep. This is incorrect. Think of it like this; since school is later, so will be sports, homework, clubs, activities with friends, not to mention activities outside of school, jobs etc. Everything will be pushed back, causing entire schedules to just get pushed back. The result? The same amount of sleep, with a later bedtime. I remember earlier this year I was talking with one of my friends who spent a fair amount of time playing sports after school.

“I didn’t get home till ten for sports practice. I hadn’t eaten dinner yet and I still had a ton of english and math homework, I ended up staying up till midnight trying to get it done,” a City High freshman said.

Already a lot of City High Athletes, through and outside of the school, aren’t getting home until very late at night; practices and meets can end anywhere from 6:00 to 11:00. Imagine what time they’ll be home when school is pushed back another hour. What will track do in the spring when athletes have to leave at one 1:00 pm for a track meet? They’ll end up missing three hours of school.That is a lot to make up, and it builds up over the course of the spring. Athletes need good grades to continue to participate in sports, but if they end up missing hours of school to leave because they have to travel to other schools, there is a chance they will fall behind. Grades may slip, and the school may lose athletes.

Another thing at risk with these new times is jobs. Yes jobs are flexible, yes managers and bosses are completely aware of high school hours. But jobs can only be so flexible. Managers may start getting fed up with unavailability, and give jobs to people who have more flexible times, like college students. Losing a job because of the new school times is a possible outcome, however another possibility is the uncontrollable assignment of the later shifts that go late into the night. Later shifts only further illustrate that students would not get more sleep.

Now some of students may be think, this doesn’t effect me because I’m not in any sports or clubs, nor do I have a job. This may be true; that it doesn’t affect them, but it still affects friends who are in sports or clubs. It may also affect parents who work in the mornings. They may not be able to give their children rides to school on cold mornings, or at all, because the school times conflict with their work schedules. The new school times may also take away from time with friends. Since school will let out later there won’t be as much time to spend with friends, and not everyone has the luxury of staying out really late. Before deciding to brush this under the rug because it doesn’t affect all students, remember that it may affect friends and family.