McKeever, Pamela M. and L. Clark. Sleep Health, In Press, March 2017. The authors analyzed the association between a delayed high school start time later than 8:30 a.m. and attendance and graduation rates. Approximately 29 public high schools from eight school districts located throughout seven different states were identified using previous research from the Children’s National Medical Center’s (CNMC) Division of Sleep Medicine Research Team. The study provides statistical evidence that both attendance rates and graduation rates are significantly improved after the implementation of a delayed morning bell. The investigation also raises questions about whether later school start times are a mechanism for closing the achievement gap due to improved graduation rates.