Officials Consider Pushing Back Start Time At St. Paul Schools

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Big changes are in the works for the St. Paul School District. Officials are considering pushing back start times, beginning in the 2015-16 school year.

High school and middle school would be shifted from 7:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m.

District officials cite multiple studies that have shown older students perform better if they sleep longer.

A study from the University of Minnesota showed that test scores rose and car crashes involving teens declined as a result of later school starts.

St. Paul Public Schools planner Ryan Vernosh says it's all about the teenage body clock.

Listen to Officials Consider Pushing Back Start Time At St. Paul Schools

If you want to weigh in, the district is starting a series of open forums to discuss the change. The first is this Thursday.

For more information about those open forums, click here.