Since the start of this new school year, there is one thing that is quite different from last year: the school cut the number of lunches down from three to two. Since our cafeteria is rather small compared to other schools and the fact we have a high amount of students attending CHS, the cafeteria is now overcrowded, tables packed, difficulty to sit down, and lines making it outside of the cafeteria. If your class isn’t near the cafeteria then you have to unfortunately stand in line and wait, which could take about ten minutes depending on how far away your class is from the cafeteria.
It should also be noted that many students go to lunch hungry having not eaten breakfast according to a survey from 2021 by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). About 80.1% of female high school students reported skipping breakfast while 69.9% of male high school students did the same. This is a serious issue as hunger has been shown to deeply interfere with our cognitive abilities. Another survey conducted by No Kid Hungry found that 80% of teachers noticed the impact of hunger on concentration, and an additional 76% noticed decreased academic performance.
There have also been students who simply decide not to eat lunch given the circumstances surrounding their 3rd period class. Although the survey used high schoolers around the country, we can assume CHS students would have similar results.
Students are expected to give it their all, but how can they when the school isn’t letting them properly access essential nutrition. Some consider the vending machine as a source of food, but the prices are a tad expensive. Although the most popular vending machines were removed last year.
Getting your lunch should be something that is rather quick and easy, not something that is challenging and prolonged, and students appreciate the school’s thought about the students well-being, this isn’t the proper way to execute it. Going back to three lunches is the most viable option as it would heavily reduce all the problems produced by these 2 lunches. If the school still wants us to have longer lunches then they should go back to the drawing board and reevaluate the lunch schedule for next year in order to avoid another catastrophe. In the meantime, this is the new normal.
