Since the school year started, students have been complaining about the three-lunch schedule nonstop. Finally, we’ve shifted into two instead! You would think that after a quarter of chaos, we’d embrace the change. But in reality, the Q2 schedule is more frustrating than beneficial.  

Okay, the new schedule is definitely a step in the right direction. The fact that COVID cases have dropped low enough for us to do this is great! And while it might be rough for students in B lunch to have their friend groups split up, it’s early enough in the year and helpful in class, so complaining about finding new people would seem petty. We can overlook that without any issue because that isn’t the real problem here–our issue is with the timing. Why is lunch still 40 minutes?

While the new schedule does get rid of the mid-class B lunch (a welcome change to those like me who can’t remember anything after the break) it doesn’t add any more time to the new two. If faculty is removing one lunch, you’d expect the others to become longer, right? That seems like a fair trade. But instead, the extra time goes to other classes and Connectivity.

Upperclassmen have been fighting for a longer lunch since the year started–how are we supposed to go off-campus in only 40 minutes? Not only are we still short on time, but even more students will be in the parking lots because of the bigger lunch sizes. Leaving campus was already hard enough, and now it’s even worse. Kids will be colliding on their way out and speeding to get back in time. The other students don’t get off easy either– anybody waiting for school lunch loses half their time to that monstrous lunch line already. They need a longer lunch just as badly.

With our distance from the local food places, Green Level’s 40-minute lunch can’t compare to Green Hope and Panther Creek’s 55 minute periods. That isn’t enough time to go off campus, have a fulfilling study session, or even refresh ourselves with friends between classes. If the other schools get more time, then so should we. Even five minutes would be a welcome change.

Students have been desperate for a new lunch for so long, and unfortunately, the new schedule still isn’t what we need. We can do better.