September 22, 2025
Wednesdays have become my favorite day because of a simple change which has drastically improved my family’s life: My son’s school starts 90 minutes late.
School buses still run on their regular schedule if families don’t have access to transportation or need to get to work. The building is open at the usual time and kids can come early to meet with teachers, get extra help on homework, hang out at the library, or eat breakfast. But an extra 90 minutes of sleep is a massive help for the growing teens who physically need it, and need the break from a demanding, often overscheduled school week. It’s one simple thing but it underscores that this is a school that understands kids and cares about them.
That’s an attitude that we as a country have drifted away from. Children matter—all children—and as a society, we are only as strong as our most vulnerable members. That includes the youngest. And how we treat them is a reflection on our values, from immigrant children targeted by ICE to young people attempting to register to vote for the first time as barriers to participating in democracy increase.
All children need us, and they need us to care.
Dr. Alison Stine
Climate Justice,
Senior Editor
