Ramapo High School students have never known the privilege of being able to leave campus to grab a quick bite for lunch. Many schools in the area can leave the campus, walk, bike, or drive to their favorite lunch place before returning to school. However, for Ramapo, this has never been something that students have been allowed to do.
Once the students at Ramapo reach their senior year, they should be able to hop in their cars and drive to get the food they may be craving during their lunch period. The seniors could leave the building freely during their lunch periods, get whatever food they wanted, and be back by the time the next period started. It would be something that almost all seniors would be happy about and give them a break within their school day to step away from the books, work, and laptop screens for lunch. With Market Basket down the street, Playa Bowls around the corner, and different food places like Jersey Mikes, YogyBee, and Uncle Louie’s within a 1-mile distance, it would be easy for seniors to pick where they may want to go, and subsequently bring business to local eateries.
When asked about the possibility of an open campus , Ramapo senior Jill Bavagnoli said, “I think that campus should be open for seniors during lunch since school lunch gets boring after three years of staying on campus. I would love to be able to run and pick up whatever I may be in the mood for instead of having the same fries, sandwich, or chips every day.” I think most seniors would agree that four years of the same lunch gets quite tiresome, and would genuinely appreciate the opportunity to diversify their lunch options in their final year at Ramapo.
Although schools with open campuses allow students to leave the premises for lunch, not all students have to. Students can choose whether they want to stay or leave depending on what they want to eat or spend on any given day. I spoke to many different members of the Ramapo staff; one teacher admitted that “this issue had been debated a ton and brought to our attention.” Some teachers offered their support, while others voiced their apprehension.
The power remains in the hands of the Board of Education, so what is stopping them from making this change? Clearly, there is the worry that students might leave and not come back, which could lead to problems with student safety and an increase in administrative disciplinary measures. There are solutions regarding the aforementioned concerns. For example, if a student wanted to leave for lunch, he or she could email the office before they leave, scan out at the security desk, and then scan back in with security upon return. This would require administration to trust the students, which may be challenging. However, as seniors, if the trust is given, they will hopefully be mature enough to sustain it.
Overall, seniors should be able to choose where they want to go for lunch and get to leave to get their food. This change would take a while to happen in the FLOW district but would be an amazing ability for the seniors on campus. They should deserve the privilege of having an open campus for lunch. Ramapo High School should be added to the list of open campus schools in the area because of our location, our amount of students, and the freedoms and quick lunch break that seniors need.
