A Two Hour Delay - Every Day at The Howard Gardner School

What would it be like to have a two-hour delay every single day? As the Fairfax County Public School system studies the later-start-time issue, a small private school in the Rose Hill area of Fairfax County allows its students to sleep in.

The official day for high school students at The Howard Gardner School (HGS) begins with an all-school meeting at 10:00 AM.  That is more than two hours later than Thomas A. Edison High School, the Fairfax County Public School that is just one mile down the street from The Howard Gardner School. Edison starts at 7:20 AM.

Some HGS students go to school before 10:00 AM if they are enrolled in foreign language enrichment that begins at 9:15. That is equivalent to the start time at Edison when there is a two-hour delay due to weather.  On those days, the Edison High School students arrive at school at 9:20 AM.  

Fairfax County is considering implementing later start times for its high school students. On Monday, January 13th, consultants from Children’s National Medical Center presented the “Blueprint for Change” report to the Fairfax County School Board, which recommended later start times by at least one hour. As the next step, the consultants from Children’s National Medical Center will provide the school board with a Stakeholder Advisory Committee membership list.  The research into this concept is well documented and dates back to the mid-1990s. 

Arne Duncan, U.S. Secretary of Education, said, “I would love to see more districts contemplating a later start time."  FCPS is making progress on its goal to start high schools after 8 a.m., but, as FCPS Superintendent Dr. Karen Garza admitted last year, “It's quite difficult to switch and change, particularly in a large system like this."  For a small private school like The Howard Gardner School, later start times have been standard practice for 10 years.  

ABOUT THE HOWARD GARDNER SCHOOL  

The Howard Gardner School is a small, independent, educationally progressive school serving grades 6-12.  Based in environmental science and the arts, the mission of The Howard Gardner School is to help bright, creative, non-traditional learners use their unique strengths to thrive academically, intellectually, and emotionally.  Learning at HGS is active and hands-on, based within Howard Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences.  Weekly field studies help students explore the community and culture in the area; internships let students explore their interests through the workplace. The Howard Gardner School is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools under the umbrella organization AdvancEd.

For more information, contact: Erick Johnson, Head of School, The Howard Gardner School, email erick@thehowardgardnerschool.org, phone (703) 822-9300