The year is 2019. 1300 students at ELHS watch the clock, waiting for it to strike 10:30: lunchtime.
The entire student body spills out of classes and into the commons. With one lunch wave and limited seating, a fast pace was key to grabbing a seat and table. If teachers kept you late, you risked sitting on the floors in the athletic wing or cozying up to Sven in the auditorium lobby.
Today, students can wait more patiently for their assigned lunch wave, never worried about whether or not they
will find a seat, however, new problems have replaced the old.
A prevalent issue? The smell.
“I came down for study hall some days and it smelled like the streets of New York City,” sophomore Valentina Schiano said. Marijuana smells in the lunchroom is an ongoing issue, and not something most students wish to smell while they eat lunch. “There are a lot of things happening in the background to try to figure out how to address that… Some of it is more vigilance… being mindful of the fact that we know it’s happening, and paying attention when it does, so that if there’s somebody who we need to address, we figure out who that is,” principal Deb Kelly said.
Other than vigilance and mindfulness, “there’s not a lot more we can do. We’re trying to do everything that we possibly can,” Ms. Kelly said.
According to Ms. Kelly, students using marijuana is not an easy problem to address.
“That’s why there are sign ins and outs to the bathroom. Some of that’s vandalism, some is vaping, some is the smell of marijuana. Anytime that we are made aware of it, we try to do our best to try to figure out where it’s coming from, [and] who it’s coming from… We can’t be everywhere all the time,” Ms. Kelly said. It’s up to students to speak up.
Although there are clearly outliers, “the vast majority of our students are very respectful,” Ms. Kelly said.
While this may be true, respectful students suffer from the actions of their peers.
“You guys don’t have access to one of the
bathrooms. Even the sign in and sign out is a
little tedious. We know that,” Ms. Kelly said.
Besides the marijuana smell, “I’m most bothered by hearing that kids are being disrespectful,” Ms. Kelly said.
“Behaviors at lunch are not ideal,” agreed assistant principal Henry Kydd.
Food service head cook Karla Sullivan added, “the respect level is gone… The cutting really bothers me… and just the disrespect. We tell [students] to move back. They don’t move. [Students] want lunch and it’s like they’re saying ‘get out of the way,” Ms. Sullivan said.
Cafeteria staff Jamie Moreno agrees, “we’ve noticed food stealing and cutting. We’re trying to catch it by moving the register. There’s a lot of pushing and shoving, which is just not safe for the kids,” she said.
Karla understands that students have a short lunch, but asks for patience when it comes to lines. “We try. Don’t make [us] feel bad. [We’re] doing our best. Maybe the day [the line] is really long, go get something else,” she said.
Karla also notes that she feels the issue of food theft is “not as bad as it used to be. Kids are a little more mature this year,” she said.
“While the lunchroom can be a chaotic space, it is a crucial part of building our school community,” sophomore class president Avneeta Basu said.
Disrespect in all aspects of lunch is an issue that students must address if they are to be fixed.
“We are always trying to think of different ways to approach it in a way that doesn’t punish the people that aren’t responsible for what’s happening, keeps everybody safe, [and] doesn’t drive everybody crazy,” Ms. Kelly said.
Students must let their voice be heard if they feel that there are problems.
“Student feedback is really important, I’m open to feedback and suggestions all the time,” Mr. Kydd said.
