Students will no longer be able to buy outside food during their lunch periods, according to assistant principal Mark Rigby.
The administration plans to be lenient with its enforcement this week as it continues to spread the news; however, as of Monday, Oct. 20 any vendors that arrive at Niles West with food that is ordered by students will be sent away, Rigby said.
“It’s always been a policy, it’s just that now it’s getting out of hand,” he said. “The number of people that buy outside food is over board, it’s becoming an issue with phones being used during homeroom and it’s just a wreck at front desk. If you really want to go eat, just do all right in school and get off campus [privileges].”
Last Friday, sophomore Taylor Isirov and other students started a petition to override the rule, which has already received 450 signatures.
“More than half the school loves to order food from outside of West,” she said. “And everyone is against this new rule. I think people won’t listen and they won’t be buying Organic Life [food]. Everyone I asked to sign the petition,jumped to me and grabbed the pen as soon as they heard what it was for.”
This is the second time students have rallied together to show how unhappy they are with the district’s food service provider, Organic Life. In February 2013, students started what they called a “lunch strike” to boycott the cafeteria food.
Senior Trisha Thomas said she was surprised by the announcement.
“My friends and I bought Jimmy Johns on [last] Tuesday so I’m really surprised about the new rule,” she said. “I think as seniors we deserve the privilege to choose where we want to buy our food from and it’s not fair that they’re taking it away.”
Senior William Sargool said students should be able to order food.
“We should be able to eat whatever we want, like what if we don’t want Organic Life. It should be our choice to spend our money on what we want,” he said.
Mario Ljubic contributed to this article.