One year ago Rhinebeck High School made the drastic switch to a rotating block schedule, including community lunch. This year grades nine through twelve have the same lunch period time during community lunch and this allows students for a more sociable part of the school day with friends, clubs and ultimately more time to eat and digest. But what are RHS students digesting? The lunch menu looks different every month but ultimately includes lots of frequently made meals. Some of these lunches include: chicken nuggets, bread sticks, pizza crunchers, and nachos. Mila Guerra, a freshman here at RHS expressed a desire for new and fresher options pertaining to the hot lunches, emphasizing students’ interest in more diverse and higher quality meals. Students have also noticed inconsistencies in portion sizes, voicing particular concerns about popular lunches such as chicken nuggets, and calling for more substantial meal portions overall. 

In the middle school, students took part in the making and establishment of the hydroponic garden which is primarily used for the middle school. Some benefits to the garden are its ability to conserve water, predictability and seasonality, minimal space, and need for less labor. The garden provides fresh food used for a new addition to BMS– the salad bar.  The salad bar is stocked with corn, cheese, tuna, chickpeas, tomatoes, cranberries and much more. These options middle school students have access to are valuable and high schoolers are voicing their wants for more fresh food much like what the middle school has access to. Students tend to see a lot of fried food, nachos, pizza, mozzarella sticks and are wanting new options because the food they eat every week gets old fast. The menu at RHS seems to be of most dispute as it’s almost always incorrect. On the website the lunch menu has the lunches planned out and students can look ahead and see if they would rather buy or bring lunch. The issue lies in that the menu doesn’t match up with what is actually served which is frustrating for students because they aren’t receiving an accurate representation of what school lunch is that day. 

Community lunch is a 54- minute block, providing students with the opportunity to eat, socialize, engage in schoolwork, or participate in club activities. Senior, Zsuszianna Moore says, “Community lunch has provided more time for schoolwork to get done and better time management for clubs to meet.” Clubs usually meet for half of the period so students can attend and still have time for themselves. Additionally, you can sit anywhere you’d like in the high school cafeteria and even outside when the weather offers. Prior to the schedule many students reported feeling stressed and uncertain about whether they would be placed in the same lunch period as their friends. Expectedly, serving almost the whole high school introduced challenges, such as the long lunch line which often consumes a substantial portion of the period, limiting both eating time and opportunities to attend clubs. This makes it difficult for students to get to clubs on time if they buy lunch because of the lengthy line at the beginning of lunch. 

Processed food doesn’t give the students that burst of energy they’re looking for and can be a heavy first meal if students don’t eat breakfast. This year under the Universal Free School Meals Program in New York all students eat lunch for free. This was a huge turning point for families across the state and has been a great resource for countless families. But this raises the question; Is free school lunch affecting the quality of food students eat? It makes sense how less fresh, non processed food would appear less on the menu now with the economic aspects changing. But how long can students eat the same options and is this affecting their performance in school and health? Student voice and opinion is valued here at RHS and we want change. Whether the change looks like the implementation of a salad bar in the high school cafeteria, simply switching up the lunch options from the usual– fried chicken, or even just regulating the lunch line, any change is better than no change. Students in the middle school are used to having lunch with just their class and not the entirety of the high school and this will be quite the adjustment to make. Making sure students feel heard and that their time is well spent especially during the period where they’re meant to relax and re-fuel should be a priority.