As we all know, school is stressful. Students and teachers constantly have the pressure of the work the next day of school, five days a week. This way of living can be hard for some, if not all, which is why I propose that we introduce three day weekends, every week, at Northwest Rankin High School. This is great by itself, but there are more benefits from this that are not initially thought of. 

First, we have the problem with five day weeks. Students and teachers are overworked, stressed, and sleep deprived. With only two days off a week, it can be hard to regroup ourselves in order to prepare for the coming week. Although these problems are already major themselves, they can also lead to bigger problems. Being overworked and stressed can both lead to significant health problems, such as heart disease, impaired sleep, depression, diabetes, high blood pressure, and plenty more. According to a study conducted by the CDC showed that 1 in 3 people don't get enough sleep. To go along with this, a study conducted by the University of Groningen in the Netherlands also found that being sleep deprived desensitizes one of our brains' serotonin receptors. Specifically, sleep deprivations affects the part of our brain the is responsible for alleviating depression and anxiety. These are all things that everyone wants to avoid, which we can do by implementing three day weekends.

People may be suspicious of three day weekends and think that they are only wanted so that everyone can have more free time, and although this is true, there are more benefits. For example, there would be financial benefits for the school. A report done by the Education Commission of the States found that by switching schools to three day weekends, schools could shave their budget by 0.4% to 2.5%. Yes, these are small numbers, but considering school budgets, they are a large amount of money. This was shown in the Duval County of Florida, where three day weekends were implemented, there was a 0.7% budget saving, which came to around 7 million dollars, allowing the school to retain up to 70 teaching positions. Another benefit of three day weekends is an improved quality of life for everyone involved. If we had three day weekends, then more time would be available for everyone to spend with friends and families, time that is usually spend either preparing for school or actually at school. A study conducted by the Mayo Clinic showed that spending time with friends and family benefits both your physical and mental health. Another study done by staffing firm Robert Half showed that employees who were happier performed better, had better relationships with others, and took more pride in their work than their less happy counterparts. The last benefit is obvious, but also true. Everyone would have more time on the weekends, therefore more time to sleep. If everyone were able to get more sleep, then there would be better grades, improved performance at school, and better relationships between everyone. 

Now that you know all the benefits of three day weekends, and not that they are just more free time, don't you think it would be the responsible, and most enjoyable choice, to have three day weekends at Northwest Rankin High School?