Delaney Welsh ’24
In response to morning traffic and tardiness, EA has officially changed the Upper School start time from 8:00 to 8:10 a.m. There are many factors that play into the new start time decision, including the evaluation of transportation types, commute distances, and the traffic circle outside of campus. Given that fourth block is now 10 minutes shorter, many Upper School students have inquired if the 10-minute change in start time is effective and a long-term solution.
The effectiveness of the new start time policy depends on each student’s commute. Lily Hendrickson ’24 who lives about ten minutes away from school, notes, “I didn’t notice it at first, but after the first week of school I realized that I have more time to myself in the morning.” However, for students who commute to school, the 10-minute difference does not affect their daily schedule. Lauren Williams ’24 explains, “I live 45 minutes from school, which is quite the commute in my opinion. I think the new start time does not make much of a difference, there is still traffic in the circle and I still have to wake up extremely early.”
Overall, the general consensus of students in the Upper School is that the new start time does not greatly affect them. Teachers and faculty, however, seem to observe a notable improvement in tardiness. Class of 2024 Form Dean Tanuja Murray explains, “The new start time is good to try to alleviate traffic. I don’t know if it has completely worked yet, but it is certainly better.” The attendance of students who take the bus to school has been noticeably better. Head of Upper School Michael Letts adds “It doesn’t appear that the traffic has necessarily gotten better, but the fact that we start 10 minutes later allows kids to get to class on time.”
Photo Courtesy of Carter Yearley ’25
Teachers have also taken into account the shortening of the fourth block when planning classes and tests. When administering a test to all of the classes in a given course, teachers must guarantee that all students are given a fair amount of time. That is, teachers must plan ahead to ensure that one of their sections is not scheduled to take a 55-minute test during the 45-minute block. Upper School History teacher Michael Whalen states, “Now that we have a 45 minute block, that changes the things I have done in years past. Ten minutes does not seem like a lot, but it is actually a decent chunk of time; it’s like 20% of class is gone. It is challenging and we are losing 3 hours of class time over the year.” Whalen also discusses how 45 minutes is not an adequate amount of time to take an assessment. “45 minutes is pretty quick for tests. So you’re trying to have your students do a good job but they end up rushing on the essay [part of the test]. It’s the little things that can add up over time,” he remarks.Regarding the extent of this change, Letts explains, “We have definitely committed for this year, so we will stay this way for the remainder of this year. What we do next year I don’t know; all I can say is that we continue to try and talk about possible solutions, ways we can alleviate traffic… we recognize that it’s really congested out there.”