Editor’s note: Gus Richardson is a student at Roaring Fork High School.
Thursday, Jan. 18, marked Roaring Fork School District’s (RFSD) first attempt at implementing its new “delayed start” protocol, intended for days when there are hazardous road conditions but that aren’t dreadful enough to call a snow day.
The idea is for RFSD to have a third option in its back pocket, rather than simply opting for either a normal school day or a canceled school day. In the past, RFSD has canceled school only for weather conditions to clear up later in the day. Delayed start days are to be announced the night before, or by 5:30am the day of — at the latest. It pushes the first bell of the day two hours later than a typical school day. Students still get to leave at the end of the day at the regular time.
RFSD pointed out that many other districts in the area have instituted this kind of policy, and in Roaring Fork High School’s (RFHS) recent “Week at a Glance” newsletter it was mentioned that the option is well liked in those districts. The district also assured that snow days are not going anywhere, just that there will be less of them each year (zero to two, they say).
Additionally, administrators don’t anticipate that delayed starts will affect the school calendar.
As mentioned in the beginning of this article, RFSD recently had its first delayed start day. I took the opportunity to observe and canvas some of my classmates at RFHS. The effects, which this reporter observed anyway, were less than ideal. Many students reported feeling more tired than they did on a regular day, and quite a few didn’t even show up. Throughout the day, for each of my classes, about a fourth of the rostered students were absent — students that don’t typically cut class. Some, assumedly, didn’t show up due to the difficulty of getting to school, but others, surely, simply had a desire for a true snow day
I myself felt sluggish and odd throughout what was supposed to be a rare, fun and refreshing experience. In many ways, I felt worse than I do on a normal day. My opinion was without a doubt shared among some of my peers.
One such student, who asked to remain anonymous, told The Sopris Sun that “While the delayed start policy is a valuable way to gain back learning time in the classroom, it interferes with a student’s normal routine — throwing them off and disrupting their productivity and ability to pay attention throughout the day.”
The anonymous source likewise noted that “The late start negatively impacts high school attendance.”
Though the delayed start policy is an interesting third option and may be beneficial from an administrative standpoint, a lot of students are opposed.
For more about RFSD’s delayed start policy, visit www.bit.ly/RFSDLateStart While such a policy seems to work for other districts, it will take more than one occurrence to see how it shakes out for RFSD.