Starting two years ago, Sparta High School decided to close open campus lunch for the incoming class of 2013. Principle Sam Russ states, "I am not taking anything away, just not giving to those who have never had." Russ truly believes that closing lunch is benefiting not only the students academics but their health as well. "I looked at the student records of those who are not allowed to leave during lunch and found that they have better academics, less tardies and unexcused absences," explained Russ.
Russ goes on to explain that the school has to serve healthy foods. "All schools in Wisconsin are mandated by law on what they can and can't serve. They provide a good healthy selection for a price that cannot be beat" continues Russ. As of now, Russ is debating to close lunch for the whole school by fall of 2012 or to allow open lunch for juniors and seniors only. "We currently have the capacity to hold three classes in the cafeteria, the only concern is the amount of time it takes for the students to get though the lunch line" adds Russ.
Sophomore Jake Hutchinson disagrees with the plan to close off lunch for the whole school. "I think it would be fair to close campus for freshmen and sophomores, but I don't like being crowded at lunch. I feel we will not have enough time to get the whole school through the lunch line" states Hutchinson. Senior Dakota Betts agrees with Hutchinson's statement. "I think juniors and seniors should be allowed to leave during lunch, but it's nice not having traffic and lines of underclassmen at the local restaurants" says Betts.
One restaurant being affected by this policy is the Subway located at 801 West Wisconsin Street, Sparta, Wisconsin. Subway has always been a popular spot to eat at during the 28 minutes of lunch. "With the exception of homecoming week, this year has been slower during the lunch hour with high school students," states Jon Hetland, the owner of Subway.
He goes on to say that he also disagrees with the policy of closed campus lunch. "As students get older they should be given more responsibility to prepare them for after high school. Since a lot of seniors are 18, which is virtually an adult, it's hard to take away the option to leave for lunch," continues Hetland.
He also talks about how the students help benefit Sparta's local businesses. Hetland states, "High school students are a good part of the lunch business and always have been because they provide daily service to the local restaurants." Hetland and Hutchinson agree with the thought that if students wanted to skip class, they would skip whether released at lunch or not. Hetland states, "If punishment is necessary, punish the students who break the rules, but not everyone because most students don't skip."
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