Our adolescents’ mental and physical health is at risk every day. Sleep deprivation has been an unmet need for decades. It is exacerbated by the unprecedented stress on adolescents due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which has increased their risk of anxiety, depression, and suicidal ideation. We ask that you please act now to let your legislators know you’d like them to support A440/S5449 for 8:30 or later school start times in NY.

How You Can Help:

• Contact your Legislators today using the easy form letter below. Find Your State Assemblyperson here. Find your State Senator here. Don't forget to send it to both your Assemblyperson and Senate representatives. THEN USE THE APPROPRIATE LETTER BELOW AND SEND IT TO YOUR LEGISLATORS! Please cc max.sslny@icloud.com

• Share this information with colleagues, friends, and family to increase support for this bill.

• E-mail us at max.sslny@icloud.com with your stories/statements about:

1. How early school start times have negatively impacted your adolescent, or
2. Benefits that your adolescent has experienced if they attend a school that starts later 

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Please act today. Your legislators must hear from you today to show their support for the NY proposed legislation, Senate bill S5449 and Assembly bill A440, for later, healthier school start times for our teenagers.!

FOR PARENTS

Dear [INSERT REPRESENTATIVES NAME],

I am writing to request that you co-sponsor Bill A440/S5449, which would require all public schools in New York State to start at 8:30 AM or later. This bill is of great importance to me and many others in our community, as it would help ensure that teenagers are able to get the sleep they need to thrive.

As a parent of teens and a constituent, I ask that you please support Assemblyman Epstein and Senator Jackson’s proposed legislation for an 8:30 or later school start time for all public schools. Our adolescents need this bill (A440/S5449) to pass!

My teen struggles with an early school start time and an extremely early bus pick-up time, which means being awake before sunrise much of the school year.

We have shared the benefits of starting school later in our district but leaving public health decisions in the hands of local school authorities has not led to a change in this area. After two decades of research, we know early school start times harm kids. Adolescence is the second most crucial period of brain development, and teenagers need 8½ to 9½ hours of sleep a night. Due to the circadian rhythms of the adolescent sleep cycle, teens typically can’t fall asleep before 11 pm. It’s up to the state to set a minimum public health standard of an 8:30 am start time, to ensure all children have equal access to health and the ability to learn fully.

I urge you, please support this bill for the mental and physical health and well-being of NY adolescents!

Sincerely,

[INSERT NAME HERE]

[INSERT ADDRESS HERE].

FOR PROFESSIONALS

Dear [INSERT REPRESENTATIVES NAME],

I request that you co-sponsor Bill A440/S5449, which would require all public schools in New York State to start at 8:30 AM or later. This bill is of great importance to me and many others in our community, as it would help ensure that teenagers are able to get the sleep they need to thrive.

As a constituent, I urge you to please support bill A440/S5449, because, as [INSERT POSITION HERE], and a parent, I have seen the toll that early school start times take on our children. The science, research, and evidence all point in the same direction: later school start times lead to positive outcomes for adolescent students in terms of their physical health, mental wellness, safety, and achievement.

•  We need this bill to pass because adolescent sleep deprivation is a public health issue. 

•  We need this bill to pass because the mental health crisis in our youth population has escalated to the point of being declared a national emergency. Supporting the sleep needs of our children is a critical proactive measure to protect mental health, especially during the adolescent period of development when the brain is particularly vulnerable.

Most importantly, we need this bill to pass because sleep is a basic health requirement, no different than food and water. Our children need adequate sleep to thrive.

It is the role of the state to protect this most basic health requirement, just as we have laws to protect our children and their health in a multitude of other ways.

By simply setting a floor on how early schools can require attendance, this “child-protection” bill empowers local communities to put kids first while still respecting, even requiring, local control of school schedules that meet specific community needs.

Please support and pass bill A440/S5449. Every day that passes without it is at the expense of student health, safety, and achievement. Thank you!

Sincerely,

[INSERT NAME HERE]

[INSERT POSITION HERE]

[INSERT COMPANY HERE]

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“What we have is a math problem. If most teens can’t fall asleep until after 11 am because of their shifting hormones, mathematically, it is impossible for them to get 8 to 10 hours of sleep if they have to be up at 6 am. The only way to solve this problem is to move the start time. We can’t change human biology, but we can change start times.”



– Vanessa Parsons, Director of Policy and Advocacy for Start School Later New York.

Start School Later, Inc., is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that works at local, state, and national levels to raise awareness about and advocate for safe and healthy school hours. Start School Later, StartSchoolLater.net, and the Start School Later logo are the trademarks of Start School Later, Inc. and are used here with permission. The statements made here by the New York State chapter are not necessarily those of Start School Later, Inc.