S.M.A.R.T. lunch has been a norm for Leesville Road High School students and staff since 2015, but recently the administrative team changed the lunch schedule. S.M.A.R.T. lunch before was 51 minutes long–the new lunch is only 40 minutes long. There are two separate lunches grouped by third period teachers. S.M.A.R.T. lunch was a good time for students to get extra help from teachers and was very helpful “for students that used it the right way,” said Diane McGeorge, a math teacher who has worked at Leesville for 12 years.
Now that lunch is shorter there is less time for students to mingle with friends, eat, and go to teachers for help. The longer classes make up for the shorter lunch which force students to “make better use of class time,” McGeorge said. However, getting help outside of class is not easy.
Students whose teachers have the opposite lunch are “struggling finding help,” said Camden Clark, a senior who has first lunch.
Not only is it hard to get help from teachers, it’s also harder to go off campus. First lunch starting at 10:35 a.m. makes it difficult to find somewhere to eat because “nothing’s open,” said Clark. The shorter lunch also makes it difficult for students with second lunch to go off campus because they now only have 40 minutes not the 51 they use to.
The lunch change also has some positive effects. First lunch gives students a “break between having two classes,” said Clark. With change comes some “getting used to” said McGeorge. Although everyone might not like the new lunch, Leesville students and staff will eventually adjust.
Hi! My name is Mariah and I am a staff writer and social media editor for The Mycenaean. I am also a member of Black Student Union and Track and Field.
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