Topic
High Schools
High schools play a crucial role in shaping young minds and preparing students for the future. Recent trends, such as increased focus on mental health awareness and inclusion initiatives, have highlighted the importance of creating safe and inclusive learning environments. Petitions under this topic address issues like improving mental health resources in schools, promoting diversity and equity, and addressing bullying and discrimination. One impactful petition calls for mandatory mental health education in high schools, citing statistics on the prevalence of mental health challenges among teenagers. Another petition advocates for inclusive policies that support LGBTQ+ students and address discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. Join the movement to support high school students by exploring the petitions and adding your voice to create positive change. Together, we can work towards ensuring every student has access to a supportive and nurturing educational experience.
What do you want to see change?
Start a petition- Trending
- Most recent
Victory!Continue to honor Malachi Washington at Bishop Ready Football GamesThe classes of 2022 and 2023 want to continue to honor their friend, classmate and teammate through the 2021-2022 season. Malachi Washington, a student of Bishop Ready and gifted Football Player passed away January 1, 2020. His football brothers continued to honor him by carrying his jersey onto the field during every game and placing it on their bench. This year they are being told by the athletic director that they can no longer honor him by carrying his number onto the field because “half the school doesn’t know him”. But half the school does, and everyone should know what a kind hearted, fun, wonderful kid he was! These boys have already been through enough and deserve to honor and respect their friend at every game of what would have been his senior year. Please sign this petition to allow our boys to honor their football brother and carry a piece of him with them at every game. https://www.thisweeknews.com/sports/20200102/ready-mourns-death-of-student-athlete-malachi-washington?template=ampart
Sports Parents2,1348/19/21
Keep 8 period days at SHSWe are finally getting back some much needed sense of normalcy at Schenectady High after the last year and a half of so of online school. It's a process, and some kids are having a harder time adjusting than others. But having the standard 8 period days we've had throughout all of high-school, at the very least, feels familiar to the students. The 8 period day is what we're used to, and what we've been easing back into. Why would we want students to have to go through yet another readjustment period to get used to 4 period days? Let us students keep getting closer to normalcy without rocking the boat. Let us keep attending the same schedules we're used to. Nobody is going to want to sit through classes for twice as long. Nobody is going to want to have the adjust their school experience again. Students just want to have a school year close to normal as possible and you're trying to take that away. 4 period school days are a bad idea and aren't going to achieve whatever you hope they will. Please listen to students. Let the seniors finish high-school with normal schedules. Let freshmen have their first year be normal as possible. Let us keep normal. 8 period schedules are the most normal and rudimentary part of our school experience and changing that is unnecessary, unsupported and disruptive. Please reconsider changing.
Joseph McCane1,12410/6/21
STOP The Historical Paul Laurence Dunbar High School from being changed to any other nameA few individuals who have remained unnamed , who are clearly NOT Dunbar Alumni are apparently striving to move quietly in a renaming process that could take place, date is unknown, and details continue to remain foggy..yet there is still quite a buzz about this.. However A LOT of individuals such as Alumni, Students, Parents, Teachers, Faculty, and Community are against this renaming process and name change in any way possible of Paul Laurence Dunbar High School, Fort Worth (Stop Six) Texas Our school & it's name is sentimental to a lot of us for various reasons. Currently that we are aware of, there has been no protest or Public out cry over the school name. Never has there been any push or reaction (s) from the students, falculty, nor Alumni over our schools name!! Our school has carried the name Paul Laurence Dunbar since its existence! Since 1953 it's always been Paul Laurence Dunbar!! That’s who we are!! That’s who we represent! We are DUNBAR Taking away this name would diminish decades of history, and memories that can never be erased along with an undying tradition of Alumni Spirit that is incomparable anywhere in the USA!! The renaming process: No Community Meeting!! No Notice!! No involvement from a mass majority of us Alumni, Students, Teachers, Faculty, and Community members. A process that many of us had no idea where and when it was taking place. The meeting(s) have been kept extremely quiet. but rest assure it's not past those who LOVE & CHERISH DUNBAR! BUT..... Let this petition of thousands of WILDCATS all over the world serve notice to ALL who have deliberated, rumored or at least had thoughts of changing the Paul Laurence Dunbar name or it's legacy WE are NEVER and will NEVER be in agreement to change who we are, what we stand for, and the Legacy thats brought us to where we are now! There is NO name nor will there ever be that's suitable to replace that of PAUL LAURENCE DUNBAR!! 5700 Ramey Stop Six Texas! We come from all over the world! We are young, We are old! We are Men, We are Women! We are a diverse people! Most importantly! WE ARE WILDCATS!!!!!! Nothing or Noone can EVER change that! We are DUNBAR!Michelle Coleman2,6401/18/23
Victory!Bring Fame Back to the "Fame" School!What if Timothée Chalamet, Robert DeNiro, or Jennifer Aniston didn't have the chance to study drama at a high school for the arts? What if Ben Vereen or Desmond Richardson weren’t able to study dance; or Nicki Minaj and Pinchas Zuckerman, music; or Milton Glaser, art?The world would be a poorer place without their enormous contributions. Fortunately, they went to the best high school in the country for artistically gifted students - Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts in NYC. Unfortunately, the next generation of talented artists may not have the same opportunity to develop their skills.Since the 2013 arrival of principal Dr. Lisa Mars, LaGuardia's admission process has been radically altered in favor of academic scores and attendance records. With these new admission criteria, talent counts for only 14% of the admission decision.* As a result, hundreds of qualified and gifted students have been denied admission.This change not only defies the 80-year-old mission of the Fame school, it also violates the Hecht-Calandra Act of 1971, which gives specialized high schools the unique power to choose their students based on a specific set of criteria. We demand that the Department of Education return the admission criteria to those consistent with the law and the original mission of the school. The Facts The Hecht-Calandra law provides that candidates for a specialized arts high school be required to “pass competitive examinations in music and/or the arts in addition to presenting evidence of satisfactory achievement.” However, since 2013, applicants who do not have at least a grade of 80 in every core academic subject are rejected, regardless of their audition score. So a student can receive a perfect 100 on their audition but be rejected because of a 79 they got in junior high school math. According to the 2015/16 Department of Education School Survey: - Only 13% of LaGuardia's teachers say they trust the principal - Only 12% of teachers say the principal is an effective manager who makes the school run smoothly - Only 16% of teachers say that the principal places the needs of children ahead of her personal interests - The United Federation of Teachers is now publicly behind this petition and has given Dr. Mars a vote of no confidence. - According to the 2017-18 School Performance Dashboard, Dr. Mars received a stunning 1.44 for Trust (out of 4.99), far below standards. The esteemed legacy of LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts must continue. By our signatures below, we demand a return to admission requirements consistent with the Hecht-Calandra law and effective leadership for the school. * This percentage was for the 2013/14 school year, provided by a Freedom of Information Law request. Requests for subsequent years’ admission statistics have gone unanswered.
LaGuardia High14,3498/14/16
Expel Christian Reed from Mar Vista High SchoolWe demand the expulsion of MVH Senior Christian Reed, also known as "Tyler" , for assaulting MVH Freshman Vanessa Moreno last friday August 20th, punching her on the jaw and mouth five times, along with the multiple reports of sexual harassment from other anonymous female classmates. On Friday August 10th, Vanessa Moreno was followed and harassed along with a ground of friends, he continuously kept invading her and making her friends uncomfortable. Vanessa then got fed up with his behavior and pushed him away, which angered Christian and lead him to punch Vanessa five times around her jaw and mouth. Assistant Principal Chris Miller got to the scene and took Christian off of Vanessa. Rather than punishing Christian for his actions, he called Vanessa's guardian to inform her that she had allegedly "bullied" Christian for his autism. Witnesses and evidence later confirmed that this was in fact not true, and neither Vanessa nor her friends had bullied nor was she aware of Christian having a disability. Vanessa Moreno, along with other anonymous students have taken a stand against fellow student Christian Reed, who is nearly 18 years old while Vanessa and her friends are all minors. In-school suspension should not be the route taken in this case, considering that it's gotten physical and there has been multiple occurrences of this type of behavior on campus. Principal Batista has the power of choosing expulsion as a punishment for his inexcusable behavior, let there be no other case like this in our school.S. Harassment Awareness MVH8688/23/21
Make Jude bleach his hairJude is scared of getting his hair dyed so we have to make a petition we need 250 signatures please help
Ethan Evers28810/22/21
School Buses for High School StudentsScranton High School doesn’t have buses for their high school students. There are students coming from all over Scranton and having to walk and take public transportation students live over 4-5 miles away and a lot of the students don’t live on bus routes. With that being said there’s so many students walking to the school I know personally my son walks 35 to 40 minutes every day to school go to all his classes then goes to football practice then walks back 35 to 40 minutes home. After asking around I’ve learned that my son is not the only student that is walking this or more every day. I feel like this is discouraging to our students who are waking up going and trying to get their education every day. Some students are waking up as early as 430 5 o’clock in the morning to get dressed and catch the bus or walk to the school having our students tired and exhausted from such an exhausting walk so early is not only discouraging our students to play and be active an extra curriculum which helps with their college but it also makes their grades seriously lag because they’re exhausted from just getting to school. With the winter months coming up we are putting our students in risk of catching the flu and colds from walking in the rain and snow so early in the day. If a student get sick because they’re just trying to get to and from school it makes them miss a whole day of school which also falls back on their education. Scranton High School is also located next to a homeless shelter that I see many students walking past every day having a school bus would limit the number of students I did have to be put at risk. We all know the fear of walking past a stranger but our students are also Learning the fear of walking past someone who may or may not be mentally stable and not knowing how they’re going to reacts as you pass their home because we’ve all seen that they set up camp right there on the street. These kids that are walking so far every day are showing us and proving to us if they want to be at school we should be doing everything in our power to help and motivate the students having a bus to school would do just that it would help our students not have to walk and such weather and show them that we’re trying to help them as well no I know we can’t afford many buses but we should be making an effort to help the students and parents the worry of making sure your child gets to and from school just so they can get an education is very stressful and we as a community should be helping each other I hope you find it in your heart to sign this petition and I hope that we are able to get a few buses out there to help the students that want to be at school getting them to school and home safely.
Jasmine Ponce1,5739/13/21
Not A distractionAre woman really the problem? Is how I dress really more important than my education. If I'm comfortable in my skin I should be able to wear whatever I want without admistration sexualizing me. To put that into prospective girls wear shorts and tank tops to stay cool when hot, not for you. Stop sexualizing our bodies. If my shorts and tank top make you uncomfortable, you are the problem. I was suspended for 3 days for posting papers around my school talking about how sexist the dress code was. My write up slip said "I disturbed the school day." So by saying I disturbed the school day you're saying that when you dress code woman more than men it's because you view it as we are disturbing the school day.
Jamie Banks13910/3/15
Victory!Let SCV High School Dance Teams Practice Under CIF Safety Guidelines.Please help our local dance teams start practicing with the CIF sports team guidelines!! Hart District and the LA County Department of Health are not allowing dance teams to start having practices when they start allowing the CIF teams to practice. All of the SCV dance teams are highly competitive high school sports teams, and thousands of hours of practice are put into having a successful year. I've been on the Valencia High School dance team for the past three years, waking up every day at 6am for practice before school and putting in many hours and many weekends for long rehearsals. I was devastated when last competition season was cut short and nationals were cancelled for all dance teams. Dance team requires a tremendous amount of commitment and training, but oftentimes our hard work goes unnoticed by people who do not understand our dedication. This year is my senior year, and this is my last chance to have a competition season which I have been desperately looking forward to. I will be heartbroken along with hundreds of other dancers, especially seniors, if we are unable to compete this year. We need to start practicing now in order to be ready to compete in January. Dance is our passion, and we dedicate so much time and energy to represent our schools in the best way that we can. All of the high school sports teams under the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) have a plan in place to get back to practice and to eventually compete. However, dance team is not included in this organization, and as of now, the LA County Public Health Department and Hart district will not be letting us practice as a team for fall or even spring. But just because we are not under CIF does not mean we are any less competitive. If dance teams expect to compete, we must have time to learn choreography, practice, and clean our dances before January, the start of competition season. In order to qualify for nationals, we must compete in regionals starting January. Dance teams will easily be able to follow health guidelines and keep safe. Dancers usually spread out to have space anyway and will have no problem staying socially distanced. Our sport does not require any shared equipment, and coaches and dancers can be trained in whatever sanitization protocols are in place according to the school rules. We can also accommodate to practicing outside. By signing this petition, you are supporting local dance teams in their efforts to get district and county approval to begin practicing within the same safety guidelines that are being implemented with CIF sports teams on campus. Please support the dance teams in SCV so that all of the dancers, their families, and coaches can have a competition season this year.Shine Lim1,0019/16/20
No Dog Park at EasternThe students and staff of Eastern High School need to be protected. They are in the middle of reopening their building for classes and the neighboring community wants to invade their space by using their property as a dog park. This permit should not be approved. There is adequate space walking distance from the school on the grounds of RFK.Christina Tillman1,6198/19/21
Victory!Save Coral Gables Senior High SchoolCoral Gables Senior High School, established 71 years ago, is at risk of being demolish for the proposed University of Miami 50,000 football stadium funded by the John H. Ruiz family. This project WILL displace students, disrupt their learning environment, cause traffic near Bird Road, and has been the home of notable alumni around Miami-Dade County and the United States; Gables High has been a feeder school for the University of Miami’s football team as well. Coral Gables Senior High School has successfully sent its students to top universities, has 2 magnet programs and a new teaching academy that allows students to graduate with an Associate’s degree from Miami-Dade College, a nationally ranked dance team, and around 3,060 students. Like our school motto: Dirigo (I Lead), we-Cavaliers past, present, and future-must lead and protect our Alma Mater. As always, Go CavsAnnette Rizo3,93812/5/21
Ensure Fair Play: Restructure Position Placement in North Carolina High School AthleticsAs parents of young athletes, this issue strikes close to home. Our children, who like many others, put their heart and soul into pursuing their sporting dreams. However, the opportunities to shine in their high school teams are being stifled. Coaches, for reasons known best to themselves, choose to let some players monopolize multiple positions, rather than distributing them amongst all athletes. These underused players put in just as much effort and dedication yet must stand by and watch their dreams dwindle away. This system is quite different from what is observed in collegiate and professional athletics, where multiple positions are seldom filled by a single player unless it's a necessary strategy. This discrepancy is not only detrimental to the development of some athletes, but it also distorts the spirit of fair play intrinsic to the world of sports. In North Carolina, there are over 200,000 student-athletes in public high schools, as per the North Carolina High School Athletic Association (NCHSAA). The negative impact is vast, affecting a significant number of budding athletes.We believe that if a team has enough players to fill all positions, then it should be mandatory to do so before any player is assigned multiple roles, except in the case of an injured mate. It is vital to structure the selection process better and ensure that every athlete who has committed their time and effort has an equal shot at glory.Make a difference by joining us in this fight for fairness and equality in high school sports, ensuring each athlete gets the opportunity they deserve. Please sign this petition.Mack Mitchell278/26/24
Remove Yondr Pouches from SEHSI want to get rid of these pouches. They cause countless problems for students. They are inconvenient and a waste of money. They are only beneficial for the teachers and we are the ones who have to be there. We can’t just leave like teachers and staff. We are the ones that have to deal with them and we should have more of a say in the matter. There are much better ways to go about the phone problem than getting rid of them entirely. Teachers can come up with ways they think is best in their classrooms to handle the issue. Some teachers could incorporate it into their lessons and use phones for their benefit. Some may decide they don’t want them at all and make students put them away during class times. Giving us pouches is not going to stop people from having their phones. Sending them to ISS when they get caught with them or even ECAP is not going to stop them either. Their are reasons we need them incase of an emergency of any sort. We shouldn’t be banned from having them just because it’s annoying at times. It’s more than wanted to text our friends because a lesson is boring. It’s about contacting our parents in the case of emergencies and so much more.Korra & Alexa Nixon6431/22/23- STOP The Historical Paul Laurence Dunbar High School from being changed to any other nameA few individuals who have remained unnamed , who are clearly NOT Dunbar Alumni are apparently striving to move quietly in a renaming process that could take place, date is unknown, and details continue to remain foggy..yet there is still quite a buzz about this.. However A LOT of individuals such as Alumni, Students, Parents, Teachers, Faculty, and Community are against this renaming process and name change in any way possible of Paul Laurence Dunbar High School, Fort Worth (Stop Six) Texas Our school & it's name is sentimental to a lot of us for various reasons. Currently that we are aware of, there has been no protest or Public out cry over the school name. Never has there been any push or reaction (s) from the students, falculty, nor Alumni over our schools name!! Our school has carried the name Paul Laurence Dunbar since its existence! Since 1953 it's always been Paul Laurence Dunbar!! That’s who we are!! That’s who we represent! We are DUNBAR Taking away this name would diminish decades of history, and memories that can never be erased along with an undying tradition of Alumni Spirit that is incomparable anywhere in the USA!! The renaming process: No Community Meeting!! No Notice!! No involvement from a mass majority of us Alumni, Students, Teachers, Faculty, and Community members. A process that many of us had no idea where and when it was taking place. The meeting(s) have been kept extremely quiet. but rest assure it's not past those who LOVE & CHERISH DUNBAR! BUT..... Let this petition of thousands of WILDCATS all over the world serve notice to ALL who have deliberated, rumored or at least had thoughts of changing the Paul Laurence Dunbar name or it's legacy WE are NEVER and will NEVER be in agreement to change who we are, what we stand for, and the Legacy thats brought us to where we are now! There is NO name nor will there ever be that's suitable to replace that of PAUL LAURENCE DUNBAR!! 5700 Ramey Stop Six Texas! We come from all over the world! We are young, We are old! We are Men, We are Women! We are a diverse people! Most importantly! WE ARE WILDCATS!!!!!! Nothing or Noone can EVER change that! We are DUNBAR!Michelle Coleman2,6401/18/23
Safety of Shakopee HighschoolNEW!!! - Id like to add the goal of this petition since it has become brought to my attention that I wasn't clear enough. All we are asking for, is more communication. We need more knowledge on more issues than just what occurred a couple of days ago. I understand that the school cannot share most details of the incident, but this isn't the first time they've been bad at communicating. When it comes to most problems in the school, they just "fix it" and move on without any explanation to anyone INCLUDING staff, students, and parents. Which causes discourse between the students and the adults of the building. It wouldn't kill them to write a quick email explaining the removal of discord on MacBooks, it wouldn't kill them to explain why if you were late to class last year in the freshman wing you get ISS. We can assume, but that is not fact. All we are asking for is more communication from adults. Old: Today, at approximately 8:15 on January 11th, 2023 there were fireworks set off in the first-floor bathrooms near the front of the school locker bay. There were approximately 4 bangs heard by students in the area. Immediately, there was chaos and fear. Some students ran, some students covered, some students froze, and others were watching on in terror not knowing if they would make it to 1st hour alive. For what felt like hours there was no knowledge of what was happening, just rumors and "most likely"s. When students felt as though it was finally safe to look and see what was happening, there wasn't much to see. Just the officers looking around for who could have done it. We had to wait a painful 42 minutes for any actual knowledge or information on the events that had just occurred. And when we finally got something, all it said was that "appropriate action has been taken with the students involved". Which for many students, such as myself, this isn't what we needed to hear. We need to know exactly what happened to those students. Will we see them again? Will we have to fear that they could do something worse? How would we contact our parents if this was an actual shooting? What do we do if there is a shooting outside of normal class times ex. Lunch and passing time? Not only do students need to be more informed, in more areas than just this, but we don't feel safe. Which according to the school that's something that they've been working on. Naturally, there is no way for the school to have known that this would have happened. But they could be more assertive with students. They could take at-risk students and actually do something about it instead of waiting for an event such as today to happen. We have plenty of resources for good students who are proactive about their mental health, but we don't have any behavior-related resources except for those that got started back in elementary school. We need to help all students, not just those who already have potential. If we focus on those at-risk, the school itself will become a safer environment. And no, I don't mean punishing them for everything they do. I mean talking to them and understanding why they are acting this way. If we can understand them, they might try to understand us. Also, these students most likely won't reach out themselves, so having staff play a bigger part in going out of their way to make sure a student is okay then these students might be able to get the recognition they need. If you want the same changes I do, please spread this petition. Please show the school how much we all care. Share it with parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and anyone else you could think of. We need to show them how much we care and how much others outside of the school do as well. Maybe, If we can do all of that, they might just actually listen to us for once. If you are interested in helping out with this cause, there may be more coming in the future about what we can do to make the school recognize us and our fear. Thank you.Chanta Brewer3671/11/23
Reinstate Middle and High School admissions screens in District 15 BrooklynI am a parent of a 4th grader and a 2nd grader in District 15 Brooklyn. Reading this New York Times article made me hopeful for children across the city but not so optimistic for my children and their friends in District 15 - https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/29/nyregion/nyc-schools-admissions.html According to this, screens such as grades and admission test scores will once more be used to assess students for entrance to Middle School BUT NOT for District 15. District 15 students should be given an equal opportunity to attend a school with a screened admissions process and not be randomly assigned a lottery number. NYC should encourage its bright students not penalize them. We pay our taxes equally, but are now being effectively singled out. District 15 families have already been leaving because of this issue. Now that the other districts have a screened admissions process, please help District 15 families have an equal footing. Please don't let District 15 get left behind academically. Applications for Middle School will open on October 26 and for High School Oct 12, act now and contact your Community Education Council Member for District 15 now at CEC15@schools.nyc.gov or look here for your school's liaison https://docs.google.com/document/d/1B5RVGEeis3OP4QwNYvEunoZvbTKz0t2JPFtXpUq0y0w/editAmelia M2310/3/22
We Need a Vote on School Consolidation (YES OR NO) in Cherokee County, NCWe are in a last minute effort to get a vote on the New Consolidated High School in Cherokee County,NC. This new school will require that some students ride the bus almost 2 hours one way and eliminate three high schools that are the center of their communities. This is one of the biggest decisions to be made in Cherokee County and it should be decided by the people.
John Midkiff8697/25/21
#fansinthestandsWe the people of the state of Oregon ask for a revision to the guidelines put out by the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) to allow fans back into the stands to support our local school athletic programs and demonstrate the support from our communities that our kids desperately need! Please support these hurting communities and get our fans back in the stands by Friday! #fansinthestands The inconsistency and inequality in your guidelines are so painfully frustrating. If we can have thousands of people in malls and hundreds of people in Costco in the same communities indoors wearing masks it is completely illogical that we cannot be outdoors in a stadium wearing masks! We need you to change these guidelines that literally prioritize shopping indoors over parents watching their own kids play sports in outdoor stadiums! Please give schools the authority to set up their own best plan & entrust them with the responsibility to employ safe practices of face masks, social distancing and safe size groups for the spaces. We recognize that you are trying to keep our communities safe but these types of unbelievable guidelines that make our kids and parents and families feel like they are not essential and what they are doing is not important is detrimental to their mental health and to the health of these communities. We all now know the risks of COVID and we can all choose to assume the risks involved with leaving our house, going to a game or going to a restaurant! It is our choice to make and we ask you to allow us tho make that choice! Anyone who doesn’t want to go obviously doesn’t have to! These are our public spaces and these are our kids and we have shown that we can wear masks safely. We are asking you to please make a change in these guidelines before Friday so that our high schools and our students and our parents can get back to some sort of normal in this transition out of this pandemic. This is desperately urgent. We are mourning the loss of a recent suicide victim from Lakeridge high school, these kids are hurting!!! Kids are literally dying from depression and we need to start supporting them! They need the support of their family & friends as they bravely return to sports. Please change these guidelines! We are willing to wear masks & proceed safely but we need you to change these guidelines that are so inequitable & clearly communicate to our kids they are not important! Local high school football games and sporting events are life-giving to these communities that have been so deprived for so long and we believe one of the most essential things for rebuilding in this transition back into normal life. We have tried emailing the office of the OHA and we get a automated response which states because of an overwhelming amount of emails you cannot respond to us. Do you see the irony. So many people are so incredibly frustrated with these guidelines & these policies and you are not listening and not responding to the people when we try to email! Thank you for hearing our request and please respond by amending these guidelines to allow for #fansinthestands! We hope for a quick response by Friday (3/5) because that is the start of what will be a very short season for our High school football programs and short seasons for other sports as well. Sincerely & urgently, The People of OregonJenny Wiepert15,8343/3/21
Change NJ High School Start Times to 8:30 or later (Yes on Bill A3816)Proposed Bill A3816, if passed, will require certain public schools to begin regular instruction for high school students no earlier than 8:30 A.M. The current average start time for NJ schools is 7:51 am, with some schools starting as early as 7:15 am. Later high school start times are associated with: Improved grades and test scores Better school attendance Better eating and hygiene habits Improved physical and mental health Reduced disciplinary problems, drug use and violence. The American Psychological Association (APA) and American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) unambiguously recommend that teenagers should have later school start times. All available data suggest that a high school start time of earlier than 8:30 am has negative consequences on every aspect of their lives. High school-age kids are supposed to get 8.5-9.5 hours of sleep. With a 7:15 am start time, kids who take the bus to school must wake up by 5/5:30 am to get ready and catch their bus. This means that to be physically and psychologically healthy, they would need a bedtime of 8 pm at the latest. This is highly impractical due to teenage circadian rhythms, and social norms and conventions. Many extracurricular activities for kids of this age don't end until 8 pm or even later. Teens Are Biologically Wired to Go to Sleep Later (and wake up later)UCLA Info on Sleep Phase Delay Puberty is associated with a shift in the circadian rhythm timing, called "sleep phase delay", where teenagers naturally start to feel tired around 10-11 pm. This dramatically increases the difficulty for high school students to get to sleep early enough to get ~9 hours of sleep and still wake up in time to get ready for school starting before 8 am. It's illogical to force the majority of teenagers in NJ to fight biology on a daily basis because our schools start too early. The CDC says that Drowsy Driving is Similar to Drunk DrivingCDC on Drowsy DrivingAnd that Teen Drivers are at Greater Risk of Car CrashesCDC On Teen Drivers"The risk of motor vehicle crashes is higher among teens aged 16–19 than among any other age group. In fact, per mile driven, teen drivers in this age group are nearly three times as likely as drivers aged 20 or older to be in a fatal crash."Yet many NJ high school schedules subject adolescents to sleep deprivation.. during the years where we teach them to drive and they take to the road as new drivers. This issue affects not only people associated with NJ high school students, but anyone who drives in NJ. Our Pandemic Response Proved that We Can Make Big Changes During the 2020-2022 school years, we proved that every single aspect of "school" can be dramatically changed when necessary to protect public health. Making the high school start time later, would protect the physical and mental health of every child attending the high school. Early high school start times are encouraging adolescence to establish unhealthy morning and lifestyle habits--including skipping breakfast to rush out the door, and excessive and chronic caffeine intake to stay awake. It's irrational that we're encouraging/forcing the majority of teenagers in our state to wake up well before dawn and risk their health and well-being during important developmental years. Later start times for school days can also reduce crime, says Rutgers University–Camden researcher School safety is a major national concern. With many different approaches proposed, it's worth considering that NJ high schools are full of thousands of chronically sleep-deprived adolescents. One major thing we could do to make NJ high schools safer is to push back the start times to 8:30 or later--thereby immediately improving the potential and likely physical and mental health of every single student. Research demonstrates that more sleep is linked to greater self control, such that delaying the school start time could reduce in-school fights, antisocial behaviors, and help teens avoid legal troubles. Early Start Times Widen Education Inequality When a school has an early start time that pushes all students to perpetually battle sleep deficiency, some kids will be disproportionately impacted. The consequences will be greater for: Students who face longer travel times to get to school, for example, those who much be ready at a bus stop an hour or more before school starts Students with home life situations that do not encourage and support an early bedtime Students with physical or mental health conditions that may be exacerbated by chronic sleep deprivation Delay High School Start Times to Help Students And Teachers of NJ Passing A3816 would be a truly heroic action on the part of the NJ government, having enormous benefits for all current and future NJ high school students, not to mention parents of NJ high school students, and NJ high school teachers. NJ high school teachers already have a tough job--educating thousands of adolescents and maintaining the rigorous standards of the USA's top state for education. The NJ government could make teachers' jobs easier and safer by passing A3816. NJ high schoolers don't have to be chronically sleep deprived and caffeine addicted.laura Y1296/10/22
Get Eaglecrest Girls Swim and Dive New BlocksThe Eaglecrest girls swim and dive team has had the same blocks since the pool was built (in the '90s). These blocks are old and the paint is chipping off of them. On top of that, the electric things in the block no longer connect to our scoreboard, and so we must connect our own wires that lay all over the deck. Not only is this a safety concern (I myself have tripped on them many times), it also just makes our school look bad. The wires, combined with chipping paint, do not send a good message. Other than just looks, the blocks keep injuring swimmers. Due to the way they are designed, with the step under the actual block, there is no way to get out without hitting your legs on the block or scraping them. The blocks are made of a sandpaper-like material. Many of our swimmers have legs covered in cuts and bruises from our blocks. Smacking your leg on the block right before a race is not exactly a recipe for success. It distracts you and for some, can mess with your mindset. We have been asking for new blocks for years, yet the message has not gotten through. So many other sports at eaglecrest are constantly receiving new equipment, and we should to. Swim deserves just as much respect as any other sport. So let me say it again, eaglecrest girls swim needs new diving blocks.M V6661/3/22