Staying In vs. Going Out for Lunch Period: Is There a Preferred Choice?

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Robbie Maisch, staff writer

For years, the choice of going out or staying in school for lunch period has been exclusive to 11th and 12th grade students at New Providence High School. However, new policies implemented as a result of COVID-19 allow Freshmen and Sophomores this choice too, and each student has their own preferred option.

Shamus Maurizia, for example, is a 9th grade student at the high school who prefers to stay in the school. He claims that staying in “prevents him from being late to class”, as he feels that he may find it easy to “forget to go back to school” once the lunch period concludes.

However, Maurizia also mentioned that going out has benefits as well. He stated that “if you need to go home for something,” then leaving the school would be an excellent way to do so in the middle of the school day.

Another student, senior Liam Reilly, does use this option for his lunch periods. He feels that going out is “much better” than staying in as it allows him to “go home and eat food at home” rather than stay in to eat. 

Additionally, students such as Logan Piper prefer to leave school to eat out at restaurants or fast food joints. Piper feels that going out to places such as Coppola’s provides a much better all around lunch experience. 

Many students, such as Maurizia, feel that the school lunches are “pretty good”, however many like Reilly also prefer the ability to go home and eat whatever it is they may want from there. The choice of food is certainly a large factor in students’ decision of where to spend their lunch periods.