As many students have noticed, the famous freshly baked cookies that they have been anticipating all summer are no longer available at the student store, along with the burritos, nachos, and mac and cheese. To the disappointment of many Poly students, the Board of Food Services declared all food items requiring heat preparation to be banned from high school student stores. These cuts on some of the most popular food items have dramatically decreased the income of the student store.
This loss of revenue affects not only those in charge of the store but also cuts down on the percentage of money given to Poly’s ASB.
“We are forced to cut back by $27,000 on ASB’s budget because income has been so low. We’ll have to come up with other methods to earn money,” said activities director Terry Speir.
Though one might assume that the Board is acting solely to provide healthier food choices for students, it is actually acting mainly in order to protect its funds.
The majority of students are more likely to purchase their lunch from the student store because of the food options provided, subsequently reducing cafeteria dining.
Although the economy is slowly rebounding, schools are still experiencing many financial dilemmas. Since student stores are only correlated to the school itself and cafeterias are managed by the school district, the board wants to restore the demand for cafeteria food.
Student volunteers that spend their lunch and nutrition serving their peers are affected by the revenue loss as well. The senior volunteers, some who have been volunteering in the café since their freshman year, received benefits such as paid prom tickets as well as other senior events paid for by the student store profits. But now, these benefits are being jeopardized because of the significantly reduced income.
The new vending machine rights that Student Store manager Mr. Ever acquired do help but are not able to compensate for the losses brought about by the Board’s cuts.
“I hope there is an amendment on [to] the law where ‘preparing’ is mentioned so that students will have options in addition to the cafeteria. The new vending rights that Mr. Eve earned may have helped our recent losses, but we’re still far from where we used to be. It’ll be tough finding a way to earn the same money that we had in previous years,” said the student store assistant Gianna Grisolia.
Although the cuts implemented by the Board of Food Services have greatly affected the revenue made by the student store, they continue to supply a variety of breakfast and lunch items. Some students will miss the freshly baked cookies, but the Jackrabbit Café will still be hopping.