On February 23, 2023, the Howard County Board of Education finalized the adjusted school start times that have been the topic of much discussion and deliberation over the past year. With this new schedule, effective beginning with the 2023-2024 school year, all thirteen high schools will begin at 8:00 a.m. and dismiss at 2:45 p.m. View the official statement from HCPSS at link. 

All HCPSS high schools currently start at 7:25 and end at 2:15, though sports practices and extracurriculars tend to extend the amount of time students spend at school. Some have already voiced their concerns about the new hours, worried that the times will only push activites later into the evening.

“I definitely think that [it] was one of the things that should have been put into consideration,” Centennial junior Charlotte Hull expressed. “However, I didn’t think that stating school at 9 o’clock would be very productive either,” Hull added, referring to the alternative start time considered by the BOE.

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