One big, happy family
Photo: Annika Conlee
Bennett Matson buys Gatorade. Due to new schedule changes, all high schoolers eat lunch at the same time.
Over 400 students now eat lunch within the same hour in the upper school because of the transition to a new schedule.
Last year, the upper school had two lunches, and the location of the class they had within the lunch block, upstairs or downstairs, determined if a student had first or second lunch. Likewise, the middle school lunch occurred in the two periods before the high school lunch and has now transitioned to one before the high school lunch.
Now, lunch begins at 12:30 p.m. for the freshman and sophomores and at 12:45 p.m. for the upperclassmen, with lunch ending at 1:20 p.m. for all four grades. The time students are released from class to eat lunch will switch throughout the year.
In order to help alleviate the large crowds in the lunchroom, Dean of Students Mrs. Kalyn Underwood extended the senior privileges for lunch from Thursdays and Fridays to the entire week.
“If I think back on Thursdays and Fridays last year, seniors would have a mad dash. Everyone was going and everyone was excited,” Mrs. Underwood said. “We were turning a hundred kids lose all at the same time. If it’s available everyday it’s not like the same ‘finally it’s here!’ It’s more like, ‘if I don’t go today, I’ll go tomorrow.’ It’s a nice privilege to have without creating the stir of energy, and we are probably less likely to have fender benders in the parking lot.”
Approaching this school year, many speculated if the new lunch would be successful.
“I think it is better than it was last year,” Ms. Ann Garrett, a member of the St. George’s housekeeping staff, said. “We thought it was going to be kind of hard, but to me, it has been much better.”
As with any change, there have been both pros and cons from the students’ perspectives.
“The con is the really long line,” sophomore Alex Cervetti said, “but I like it better because all my friends and I have lunch together. It’s not split up.”
The middle school has been affected by the change as well and seems to still be adjusting.
“It’s very crowded. Sometimes you run out of stuff,” seventh-grader Alyssa Aghabeg said. “They are kind of rushing you to bust your plates because they need to wash them for the upper school.”
Despite the nerves, the administration seems to be pleased with the new lunch schedule.
“I think it is going well. I will admit I was nervous because it was a lot of people to put in a very small time,” Mrs. Underwood said. “I think the people who are moderating the lines are doing a very good job sending people, so they are actually filtering more people through in a shorter time than they did last year.”
