Later School Start Time Committee

2021-2022 Current Goals

In the Fall of 2021, a Trumbull Public Schools Late School Start Committee (LSSC) was reformed with the intention of building upon the foundational work started by past committees around Late School Start in Trumbull Public Schools.  Current goals for the committee are to:

• Further identify the levers that indicate a need for late start within a larger wellness themes.
• Develop and implement stakeholder surveys regarding specific options. 
• Pursue implications of on special populations, and athletics, as well as TLC and traffic 
• Examine details of internal schedule changes needed for options. 
• Collect information from districts who have implemented late school start both recently and in the past.  
• Provide recommendations to the Board of Education regarding our findings.

The committee met throughout the year and a culmination of their work was presented at the May 24, 2022 Board of Education meeting. It was decided at that meeting that future efforts in the 2022-2023 school year will be focused on finding more information in regards to a 30-minute later school start time in specific. Click here to view the presentation slides from that meeting. 

Committee Members

• Susan Iwanicki, Ed.D., Assistant Superintendent, Chair
• Edrina Laude '22
• Eman Seyal '22
• Derrek Ploski -23
• Meredith Chamberlain, parent
• Britney Cullinan, parent
• Thomas Edwards, Trumbull High School Science Department Chair
• Marc Guarino, Principal, Trumbull High School
• Christina Hefele, Director of Digital Learning 
• Michael King, Trumbull High School Athletic Director
• Rob Martini, parent
• John Mastrianni, President, Trumbull Education Association
• Jennifer Neumeyer, Principal, Tashua Elementary School
• Dawn Perkins, Transportation Coordinator
• Bryan Rickert, Principal, Hillcrest Middle School
• Stuart Schwartz, community representative 
• Frank Squiccimarro, parent

Late School Start Options

(Click Graphic to enlarge)

Late School Start Times: Research and News

There are a multitude of resources regarding last school start times and the impact of sleep on student performance. The Late School Start Committee encourages families to seek out their own resources, but below are a few for your consideration:

• The American Psychological Association - Late School Start Times Promote Adolescent Well-Being
• Cleveland Clinic - Is Your Child Getting Enough Sleep? Here’s How to Tell
• Psychology Today - Starting School Later is Not Enough
• Washington Post -This state becomes the first in the nation to mandate later start times for middle and high schools. Here’s why.
• Sleep Foundation - How Would Later School Start Times Affect Sleep? (This article contains links to multiple other resources)
• Society of Behavioral Medicine - Start Middle and High Schools at 8:30 a.m. or Later to Promote Student Health and Learning

Resource Articles about Late School Start in Connecticut and Other Districts in Fairfield County 

• Connecticut Lawmakers Push for Late School Start Times
• Connecticut Start Times Among the Earliest in the US…
• Norwalk Switches Back School Start Tines After Bus Delays, Traffic Jams
• New Canaan School Board Agrees to Postponing Later Start Times
• Late Start Times for Greenwich Public Schools Approved
• This Fall, More Sleep for Students in Wilton
• Newtown School Start Times Moving
• UConn Today Influencing School Start Times with Science 

Community Voice

Any member of the Trumbull community who would like to provide input to the Committee is encouraged to forward it via e-mail to the Committee Chair, Dr. Susan Iwanicki who will summarize it at the next Committee meeting as Correspondence received, and who will provide any feedback necessary after the meeting. Please note that such an e-mail is subject to disclosure based on the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).

Late School Start Exploration Background 

Trumbull Public Schools began exploring Late School Start in February of 2019 and continued to gather information about the research and implications in March of 2020. 

• Please click here for the initial presentation regarding the exploration of Late Start at the High School level in Feb of 2019. 
• Please click herefor the March Presentation Teens and Sleep: School Start Times presented in March of 2020. 

On July 14, 2020, the Board of Education approved the creation of a district school-based Later School Start Time Committee with members from our students, teachers, administrators and community.  The committee met primarily in the fall of 2020 and explored different Late School Start timing options for Trumbull Public Schools. A final presentation of the 2020 Committee was presented to the Board of Education on Tuesday, November 10, 2020. Please click here for a copy of the November 10th presentation.

• May 24, 2022 presentation to the Board of Education