Almost everyone was cynical when the Chief of St. George's School came up with the proposal that the school should be opened a half-hour later than what it usually does.

Eric F. Peterson, the Head of the private boarding school in Middletown, just wished that St. George's students could get more time to sleep. However, everyone did not like his proposal and he had to face resistance.

He said that when he informed everyone about his plan, everyone said that a mere half-hour of added sleep would not make any difference rather; the kids will only stay awake later in the day.

But he was sure what he meant to say since this was surely going to help the kids in many a ways.

The school, which comprises grades 9 through 12, made a decision to try out the later time just as an experiment. According to the preparation, from Jan. 6 to March 6, 2009, school would start at 8:30 a. m. instead of 8.

But the effects of that extra half-hour were so quick and remarkable that the 8:30 a. m. start time has stayed in effect ever since.

And a local sleep researcher's records of those effects are being published in the July issue of the Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, which only added to the growing facts that later school start times have quantifiable advantages for teens.