Off campus lunch

Jordan Turner:

This is the controversial question that often crosses a lot of DV students’ minds. Who wants to eat the same soggy pizza and stale rice that is the school lunch every day? Let’s be honest … no one. So why not have off- campus lunch?

With off-campus lunch, students can go home or to a local restaurant. Many students wake up late because they were up late studying the night before, and in the morning, have to rush out of the house, forgetting to pack themselves a lunch. Having the option to go off campus to get lunch gives students the opportunity to eat lunch and not skip a meal. Plus, being able to leave campus and enjoy eating lunch out with friends gives students a chance to relax and take a break from all the stress and pressure of being at school.

Also, school lunch is expensive. It is $4.00 for one slice of pizza and a milk. Why pay for this when Safeway offers a better quality slice of pizza, chips and drink of choice for the same price?

Giving students the privilege to eat off campus would provide them with them real world experiences and situations, providing them with the opportunity to gain more responsibility.

Not only would this benefit students, but it would also help out local businesses. Many independently owned restaurants near our school are shut down because they don’t receive enough business. If the administration allowed its students to eat lunch off campus, they would give them more business, thus helping to stimulate the economy more.

Off campus lunch is just an overall better situation than forcing students to stay on campus and eat the school food. It will help make the students’ days more bearable and improve their overall high school experience.

 

Mimi Evans:

As one picks apart yet another subpar burrito or eats a floppy slice of pepperoni for the third day in a row, the inevitable question arises: why doesn’t Dougherty have an open campus during lunch?

As wonderful as the idea sounds, it would never work for DVHS. Dougherty already contends with tardies in the morning, especially on block days. The number of tardies to fifth period on regular days and third and sixth on block days would increase exponentially. This is not because students will purposely use the open-campus as an excuse to be late, but for the simple fact that we will sacrifice our perfect attendance record for the $5 latte or hastily-made sub that we paid for. Our split-second decision between food and punctuality in a time-crunch will undoubtedly go to the former.

Schools like San Ramon Valley High are able to have open campus lunch because they have restaurants within walking distance. There are no restaurants within walking distance of Dougherty. That means open campus could only be utilized by seniors and a few lucky juniors. Even the upperclassmen who do have a vehicle must be content with slim pickings. It will still take a good 10 minutes to the Safeway Plaza and back, and the next closest restaurants are near Blackhawk and take a 16-minute roundtrip. There is no possibility to have a sit-down meal with 19 minutes, so Juice Zone and McDonalds are the main fast-food options.

The most dangerous aspect of off-campus lunch is transportation. Undoubtedly and good-heartedly, students will want to drive their friends to lunch. But most students do not have their full license yet, so technically driving other minors (and even those who are 18) is illegal. No one wants to go out for popcorn chicken and return with a ticket. And, of course, car accidents as students rush to and from Dougherty will be an increasing possibility.

An open campus at DV is simply a huge liability for minimal returns. While the school’s fried rice medley might not be worth the risk, neither is endangering yourself just to avoid it.