Throughout the school year, students are bursting with stress due to the loads of school work they need to keep up with, extracurricular activities, and life outside of school. And, to top it all off, after spending eight straight hours at school and committing to clubs and sports, students have to stay up late to finish loads of homework with no time to relax.

With all the commitments students have, it can be hard to prioritize mental health and self-care.
For example, students lose a lot of sleep during the school year which causes poor academic performance; students must get the appropriate amount of sleep each night to help them concentrate, stay focused, and perform better in class. It is a widely known fact that teens need at least eight to nine hours of sleep to properly function throughout the day.

Studies have also shown that lack of sleep increases the risk of various health issues in young students, including obesity, type 2 diabetes, poor mental health, and increases the likelihood of car accidents.
Sleep deprivation makes it difficult to concentrate and hinders learning. Sleep itself plays a part in memory consolidation, which is crucial for picking up new knowledge.

Teachers and parents can also create stress as they put expectations on their children. Therefore, students can not reach these expectations and their full potential without being able to recharge for a full, new day of learning.

A late start, will give students something to look forward to during the week and give them extra time to work on homework or just relax the night before or the morning of.

Students need an escape, a stress reliever, and something to look forward to during the school week; a late start day will bring those benefits and more to students of BHHS.