The debate over if upperclassmen should be allowed to leave the school for lunch has been happening for awhile but for school officials say the issue is less about freedom and more about liability. While students like Owen Pecar 26’ feel the current policy kind of sucks, safety is a big part of the rule and how the risks outweigh the benefits. 

“It’s a matter of trust,” says School Resource Officer Pawlik. “We would have to trust every student to come back, and there are students who would take advantage of that.” 

According to Pawlik, the biggest hurdle is student safety. Because the school district is responsible for students during class hours, any off-campus incident like a fatal car accident on the way to McDonald’s could hold the district liable. 

“I think people would definitely ruin it for everyone else,” Pecar admits. “Someone is going to do something stupid.” 

Beyond the risk of accidents, Pawlik points out that an open campus makes the building harder to secure. The school has no system to alert off-campus students of emergencies like a fire alarm, gas leak, or a sudden lockdown. 

“There’s no phone call or text message that you get that says, ‘Don’t come back to school,'” Pawlik. 

While Pecar argues that leaving campus would allow students to find healthier food options to help with “macros,” Pawlik remains concerned about what happens when students are unmonitored. He notes that weather and the potential for students to return under the influence of alcohol or marijuana are things that happen that the school doesn’t want to happen. 

For now, the policy remains unchanged. Even if students started behaving better, Pawlik believes it only takes one person driving recklessly or making a poor choice to end the discussion for good.