In a special assembly for seniors during advisory on Wednesday, Oct. 2, Mr. Barry Smith, Assistant Principal, officially announced the new senior-only open-campus lunch policy. The announcement was met with applause and cheers. All seniors will be eligible to eat off-campus every single day. 

In order to participate in open campus lunch, seniors must have a 95% cumulative attendance and five or fewer tardies starting on October 3 and onward. Mr. Smith said, “If students are going off-campus, there is potential for missing classes…we want students that are demonstrating responsibility by getting to school consistently and on time.” Mr. Smith emphasized that open-campus lunch is a privilege. “This is a privilege that can be revoked… Just because you earned it doesn’t mean that you have it for the year. And just because it is a privilege that has been revoked, doesn’t mean that it has been revoked for the entire year.”

This announcement was met with mixed reactions from both seniors and underclassmen. David Zhou (Adv. 000) spoke in support of the new policy. “As a senior, I think this is a wonderful idea. It prioritizes and rewards students who have spent the most time here at Northside: seniors.”

Khristian Jones, Adv. 002, is also looking forward to the new changes. “I think this is a great decision and an awesome privilege for the seniors. I think I prefer having open-campus lunch a lot more than ordering in because leaving the school gives us a bit more freedom and options for food. It’s also less expensive.”

Others were not as excited when the news broke. Samantha Ringor, Adv. 001, said, “Initially I was excited about the new lunch system since I am a senior and other CPS schools have open-campus lunch. However, I then remembered that we don’t have very many nearby lunch options.”

Some seniors also acknowledge that the new system might be unfair to students in younger grades. Zhou also said “As a senior, I prefer [the new system], but to be honest, the old system benefited everyone, including seniors.” Ringor said “I don’t really see the point of restricting the lunch policy to just seniors. Everyday open-campus lunch doesn’t seem too different than the selected open-campus lunch days we’ve had the previous years that are open to everyone else.” Jones agreed with this sentiment, saying “I understand why non-seniors would be upset. I would be annoyed if I couldn’t get open-campus lunch nor order food.”

Juniors and sophomores were split on the issue as well. Andrew Martinez, Adv. 107, said “I don’t mind [the new system]. I, personally, actually prefer open-campus lunch for seniors. I’m looking forward to it next year.” Noah Villalon, Adv. 205, disagreed and said, “I don’t think it’s fair for the lower grades. I think they should at least give us a chance. If you are a freshman or sophomore, [open campus lunch] is a distance away.” On the flipside, Jayla Samayoa, Adv. 204, said, “It makes sense. They’re seniors and it’s their last year. Let them have fun in their last year. And [the new lunch system] is something that we can all look forward to when we’re seniors. It’s definitely a good system.”

While the administration finalizes the logistics, Mr. Smith told the audience of seniors what they need to do. Students must stay informed by regularly checking their emails, maintain a good attendance record, and turn in a new open-campus lunch form when it is released. Northside administrators look forward to these new changes. “We want this to be an opportunity that you can enjoy.”