Proposal To Change School Schedule In Princeton Modified

PRINCETON, NJ — A proposal to begin and end the day early in the Princeton Public School District has reportedly been revised, and looks to be headed for a Jan. 23 vote. Currently, the high school day runs from 7:50 a.m. to 2:51 p.m.; John Witherspoon Middle School students are in class from 8:30 a.m. to 2:55 p.m.; and elementary school runs from 8:25 a.m. to 3 p.m. The proposal had called for the high school and the John Witherspoon Middle School days to run from 8:45 a.m. to 3:45 p.m.; and for the elementary school days to run from 8:10 a.m. to 2:45 p.m.

After receiving feedback from the community, Princeton Superintendent of Schools Dr. Steven Cochrane put forth a modified proposal at last week’s Board of Education reorganization meeting. The new proposal calls for the start time at the high school and the middle school to be moved to 8:20 a.m. for the 2018-19 school year, according to the Princeton Packet. Changes to the schedules at the elementary school follow in the 2019-20 school year.

The changes were made after receiving feedback from community members concerned about expanded before and after school care, and staff members concerned about their commute, according to the report. More feedback will be taken before the Board of Education’s scheduled Jan. 23 vote.

Evelyn Spann, the Cranbury representative on the Princeton Board of Education, said she would like to hear a commitment from the board, according to Planet Princeton. She said Cranbury would have to decide if it would do tiered busing or purchases buses to send its students to Princeton schools. If the school district decided it wasn’t working and switched back to the current schedule, Cranbury would be stuck with the financial impact with no reverse, she said.

Cranbury has been sending students to Princeton schools since 1991, and had 280 students attending Princeton High School in 2016-17, according to the district.

Starting the day on the schedule proposed at last week’s meeting means lighted sports fields would be unnecessary. Residents who live near Princeton High School were reportedly opposed to that idea.

Concerns about the school day schedule came from a survey in which more than 80 percent of students in the district said they are often or always stressed by schoolwork. Only 15 percent said they truly enjoy learning during the school day.

Students are also spending between three and three and a half hours a night on homework, and getting between six and six and a half hours of sleep a night. During a review of the survey in April, the district learned that about 47 percent of students miss one or more days of school each month because of a stress-related or emotional problem.

Princeton Mayor Liz Lempert has come out in support of beginning the school day later.

Patch file photo