Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, September 17, 1994                   TAG: 9409190020
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: VIRGINIA   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: By JOEL TURNER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

MIDDLE SCHOOLS GET LATER START?

Almost everyone has ideas on how to reduce crime and pregnancy among youths, but they often are complex.

Roanoke has one of the highest rates of teen pregnancies in the state. Because of growing community concerns, the city has appointed a task force to study the issue and recommend ways to reduce it.

Now School Board member John Saunders has suggested that a change in the daily schedule for pupils in grades six through eight might help keep them out of trouble. Studies have shown that children are more likely to get into trouble if they have a lot of unsupervised time, especially in the afternoon, Saunders said.

In Roanoke, middle-school pupils, ages 12 to 14, begin the school day at 7:40 a.m., earlier than either elementary- or high-school students. They get out at 2 p.m.

High-school students begin the day at 8:25 a.m. and get out at 2:40 p.m. Most elementary pupils begin class at 9 a.m. and go home at 3:15. Five elementary schools - Fallon Park, Huff Lane, Monterey, Round Hill and Westside - begin the day at 8:25.

The schedule leaves middle-schoolers with a lot of time on their hands in the afternoon before their parents arrive home from work.

"These are the years when children tend to get into trouble," Saunders said.

But if the schedules for middle and high schools were reversed, high-school students - many of whom have part-time jobs - could get out 40 minutes earlier.

Board Chairman Nelson Harris said Juvenile and Domestic Relations Judge Joseph Clarke has agreed to help research the issue by recording the times when offenses by middle-school-age children are committed.

The board asked Superintendent Wayne Harris and his staff to study the issue and determine whether a change is feasible and practical.

James Wilson, principal of Ruffner Middle School, said research has shown that middle-school students perform better academically if they begin classes later in the morning.

But Wilson said he does not know of any studies of whether the juvenile crime rate would be affected by the daily schedule for students.

Nelson Harris said school administrators will determine the cost and impact of a change. It could affect school-bus schedules that must be coordinated for all schools.