The infamous one lunch issue… A topic that lingers within the school halls every Friday– and not for a good reason. A plethora of students interviewed are opposed to the idea, many quite strongly. But what were their reasons?

When all students in iPrep are concentrated into one area, issues of overcrowding begin to occur; especially in a small school. Navigating the cafeteria during Friday’s one lunch is much like trying to get through rush-hour traffic: time-consuming, noisy, and the lack of room to move are all very prominent.

The usual buzz of noise on an average lunch day is amplified by the large crowds in small spaces. The usual long, winding line for food is made longer by a flood of hungry students– many choosing to discreetly skip others. And let’s not forget
the lack of seating, as evident by students sitting on that
field outside and on the floors within the cafeteria.

As a student myself, I have witnessed others race for seats and even save some for friends. Some friends can’t even sit with their own friends due to the overcrowding, making them feel left-out and lonely as they try to search for a place to sit and belong.

Friday’s one lunch is much like trying to get through rush-hour traffic: time-consuming, noisy, and the lack of room to move are all very prominent. The usual buzz of noise on an average lunch day is amplified by the large crowds in small spaces. The usual long, winding line for food is made longer by a flood of hungry students– many choosing to discreetly skip others. And let’s not forget the lack of seating, as evident by students sitting on that field outside and on the floors within the cafeteria.

As a student myself, I have witnessed others race for seats and even save some for friends. Some friends can’t even sit with their own friends due to the overcrowding, making them
feel left-out and lonely as they try to search for a place to sit and belong. So why implement this idea of one lunch? Many students speculate that it’s so teachers of both the second and first floor can have lunch together. Others believe it’s for security reasons; to make sure students of another lunch don’t have the opportunity to skip for a lunch that is not their own.

Ultimately, all these issues pile up on students and create unnecessary stress due to the overcrowding, having detrimental effects on the well-being of students

If twice the amount of students, why not twice the amount of time?
-Eva Purcell (Sophomore)

[One lunch] was made only for the teachers’ convenience in trying to have lunch together.
-Rafael Macchia (Sophomore)

Sometimes, I just want to get lunch without running to get a good spot in line. Even then, I’m always skipped.
-Anonymous (Freshman)