Along with the new block schedule in the Upper School, the lunch schedule has also changed. Most freshmen and sophomores go to early lunch from 11:25 a.m. to 11:55 a.m., Middle School lunch is from noon to 1 p.m., and juniors and seniors are scheduled for late lunch from 12:40 p.m. to 1:10 p.m.

US Principal Chris Hughes said that the reason for the new lunch schedule is to “take lunch out of being an academic period” and also to allow middle school students to have an exclusively grades six thru eighth grade lunch period.
But since US students and faculty are only allowed to go to lunch at their designated times, many juniors and seniors are forced to each lunch at 12:40 p.m. instead of any earlier time. This lateness is even further pushed on Wednesdays when there are late starts.

Students that experience this extremely late lunch talk of how it is hard to play an after school sport after finishing lunch so late and also being hungry despite the new snack during X-Period.
Junior Maggie Clark suggests “conserving silverware” because the majority of it is used by the time late lunch comes around.

Peggy Holzem, who works in the dining hall, talks of an uneven flow of students throughout the lunch period. She notes that there has been no difference to her besides early and late lunches being faster than middle lunches.
On the old schedule, US students had designated lunch periods, but they weren’t restricted from going to any other lunch periods if they did not have a class.

Understandably, it is important that MS students are able to eat lunch, but it is unlikely that enough US students are free during the middle lunch period so that younger students would not be able to eat lunch.

It would make sense to get rid of restrictions so that students would can eat an earlier lunch if possible and also allow for an even flow of students through the dining hall so that there is no lack of food or silverware near the end of the time lunch is served. Of course students and faculty alike recognize that it is the matter of making it work with the new schedule that is most difficult.

What is important though, as Holzem said, “It all works out – everyone ends up being fed.”