LDOE presents HCR 72 study on later school start times; department recommends local pilots and stakeholder engagement

The Louisiana Department of Education presented research and stakeholder feedback gathered under House Concurrent Resolution 72 (HCR 72) on whether later school start times for middle and high schools would reduce chronic absenteeism, truancy and related academic problems.

Dr. Ernie Singleton, assistant superintendent for the Office of Career and College Readiness, told the task force the study was requested by the legislature to evaluate start times across the state, “with a particular focus on middle and high schools,” and to examine scientific evidence about adolescent sleep and the logistical, financial and community implications of changing schedules. The department released a survey and said it received more than 300 responses from transportation directors, child-welfare and attendance directors, administrators and school counselors.

Singleton defined key terms for the group. “A chronically absent student is a student who has missed a certain number of days in the year, and that includes all types of absences — unexcused, excused, as well as suspension,” Singleton said. By contrast, he…