AUGUSTA, Maine — Many Maine High Schools begin their days bright and early—and it's been that way for decades. Now, some Maine lawmakers are looking to make a statewide change, they said, to help students' well-being.
The American Medical Association supports later school start times to help kids focus on prioritizing a regular sleep schedule.
State Senator Mattie Daughtry, D-Brunswick, introduced a bill to make the delayed start times a law for Maine public high schools.
Daughtry introduced the legislation to the Legislature’s Joint Standing Committee on Education and Cultural Affairs Thursday.
"This was something I’ve been passionate about since I was at Brunswick High School," she said before the public hearing began.
Daughtry cited medical evidence from the Maine Medical Association and the American Academy of Pediatricians that shows students with more sleep have higher test scores, their mental health benefits, and are at a lower risk of depression and anxiety.
The evidence was also filed as testimony during the public hearing.
Even after a similar bill was struck down in prior legislative sessions, Daughtry said she would continue to push her bill especially after speaking to students in districts that did implement a later start time for school.
"That’s the most important testimony when it comes to this piece of legislation, and they have felt massive differences since the start times have shifted," she added.
Some school districts in southern Maine, like Portland and South Portland, have pushed back their start times in recent years.
Opponents of the bill, like Maine Curriculum Leaders Association Executive Director Deb McIntyre, said there are too many challenges for schools to overcome for this bill to be effective statewide.
"In particular, transportation, the hardship on some families as they rely on older siblings for providing childcare, the change of work time, and the need for daycare," she said during her public testimony.
Officials with the Maine Principals’ Association Professional Division and the Maine Education Association testified neither for nor against the bill, arguing those challenges are troubling and adding there are a number of contributing factors, not just school start time, that affect students’ sleep schedules.
One Maine physical education teacher spoke during the hearing about how students have changed life habits drastically over the decades, stating kids drink more caffeine, use more nicotine products, and have hours of screen time a day.
All those who testified against, or neither for nor against, said the delayed start time decision should be made on an individual district basis.
Daughtry added California implemented a statewide delayed starting time and said Maine could look to that state as an example.
"California has stated they’ve been saving money on bussing. They’ve been able to consolidate and make a more efficient bussing schedule," she added.
The legislation will now be worked on in the committee before it is voted on to move to the full Legislature.