Should students have to eat lunch on
campus?
By DANA DUGAN
Express Staff Writer
Where do your school children go for
lunch? Do they leave or stay on campus. And what does open closed campus mean
exactly?
In the case of the new Wood River High
School, it could mean the students would not be able to leave campus for lunch.
Currently, students can be found busily snapping up salads and sandwiches at the
grocery stores, Snow Bunny and other convenient locations in Hailey.
Is this a bad thing?
Well, the problems seem to arise when
kids, in a hurry to get back to campus before the bell rings, drive too fast on
side streets. Or, if they don’t speed, there’s the possibility they’ll be late
getting back to classes.
"They look ahead at a four-way stop and go
through it," one parent in the Deerfield subdivision said. "It’s a quick run
through Deerfield. It’s teenagers not paying much attention. There could be
little kids running out at any minute."
Complaints about speeding do mostly come
from homeowners in Deerfield, Hailey Police Chief Brian McNary said.
"It’s slowed down a bit this year compared
to years past." He speculated that it might be due to people growing used to the
situation or citations being issued.
"It may shift problems from lunch to after
school. I don’t know," McNary said. "Our position is I’m okay with whatever the
school district decides."
According to several students, being off
campus and a part of the town is healthy. Connections are made that otherwise
might not occur. They feel trusted, spend money in Hailey and let off steam away
from school.
However, WRHS encompasses 97 acres. A
student can walk a quarter mile in any direction and still be on campus, said
Blaine County School District Superintendent Jim Lewis.
The district had an obligation to revisit
the issue, Lewis said. Six years ago when first brought up by a neighborhood
watch committee, the issue was set aside because the kitchen and cafeteria in
the high school couldn’t handle that many lunches.
"We said we’d revisit if and when we have
the facility. Now, with the new facility (in the new high school that opens next
fall), we do," Lewis said.
In asking the community for input, several
issues are cited: safety for kids leaving campus, safety of the neighborhoods
and attendance.
Another more subtle issue is the influence
of older kids who may draw younger kids off campus, Lewis said.
There has been no decision by the
committee as yet. Its job is to hear testimony, do research and figure out
options, Lewis said.
The committee is made up of various
groups: Representatives from each school district zone, excluding Carey, were
nominated by board members, school administrators, teachers, students
representatives from each class, city police and the school’s resource officer
and a cross section of parents.
"We’re listening to police, school food
service, and residents of the exact communities. There is plenty of opportunity
for input," Lewis said.
Closing the campus entirely is only one of
the options that the committee will consider. The campus could also be partly
closed to all but seniors who have earned the privilege of leaving.
"Or leave as is and live with
consequences," Lewis said.
He expects a recommendation to be made to
the school board in June.
An open forum was held to discuss the
issue at WRHS last week and another is scheduled for Monday, May 12, at 7 p.m.
at Hemingway Elementary in Ketchum. The public is encouraged to participate.