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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I don’t think this is really about whether teenagers “deserve freedom.” It’s more about equity, safety, and school operations.

A closed lunch works at many high schools across the country, including very large schools. Schools still manage clubs, tutoring, makeup tests, rehearsals, and social spaces by staggering lunches and using classrooms, libraries, courtyards, and other areas; not just the cafeteria.

Open lunch also creates equity issues. Students with cars, money, and nearby food options have a very different experience from students who don’t. It can unintentionally highlight socioeconomic differences during the school day.

There are also real safety and supervision concerns with hundreds of students driving around or leaving campus daily: traffic accidents, truancy, vaping/substance use off campus, and difficulty accounting for students during emergencies.

And the “cafeterias are too small” argument doesn’t fully hold up because schools with 3,000 students already operate with multiple lunch waves and students spread across different spaces.

I understand why some families like open lunch, especially for older students, but schools absolutely can support clubs, test makeups, and student independence without requiring students to leave campus during the school day.

This has been discussed since at least 1999:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/1999/10/16/many-schools-closing-campus-during-lunch/6ff1366d-19d2-415c-a2c6-be27177ad585/

You can’t cry about how much MCPS spends on litigation and then argue for letting thousands of teenagers roam the streets for an hour a day.[/quote]

The white liberal moms gnashing their teeth because they don't get to keep things the way they were can't handle having their bubble burst.

Get over it. Closed lunch is the norm in most the of the country and the world.[/quote]

I have a BCC graduate and a current BCC junior. Why should they be penalized because something that happened at Whitman? My kids are not privileged and mostly have stayed on campus to play sports, do makeup tests or attend club meetings. But they also occasionally run to local businesses to grab lunch. Open campus for schools that can support it are not a risk or a community problem.[/quote]

How about what happened near BCC?  Would you want your kids caught in gunfire?  https://www.fox5dc.com/news/two-arrested-after-fight-gunfire-near-bethesda-chevy-chase-high-school[/quote]

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