Norton High School Coffee Policy Should be Revised

Dear Kelly,

I am writing to you about a rule that I see a need for change in. I decided to publish this letter in the patch to attempt to gain support from readers in order to try and change this rule at the . Out of all the rules in Norton High School, I personally find the most frustrating to be that we are not allowed to bring coffee into school in the mornings. Although coffee can be messy, I have noticed that students trying to hide coffee from teachers become clumsier and more accident prone with their coffee than they would be if they were allowed to simply place it on their desks. Coffee spills can easily be cleaned with water but to prevent spills in general a new school rule could be put in place to prevent spills in general. Any student who spilled a coffee or made any mess could receive a detention. This would ensure that students cleaned up after themselves and would cut down on messes without getting rid of coffee all together.

In my experience from working at , I have seen what large amounts of money kids spend on coffee. To then tell these kids they must throw away the coffee they just bought and barely got to drink is absurd. Students, even those who work regularly, do not have disposable income so although spending $2.56 on a coffee may not seem like a big deal, it is. Some teachers allow students to stand in the lobby and finish their coffee before class as long as they are not late. Drinking large quantities of coffee in three minutes or less can literally make students, or anyone in general, sick to their stomach. I speak from experience. Coffee is also known to cause muscle cramps if drank quickly. This is very unhealthy. Although allowing us to drink in the lobby may save us money, it does not save our stomachs.

The seemingly simple solution to this problem would be to not bring or sneak coffee into school.  This rule would work if it was enforced school-wide. If we did not see nearly every teacher sipping their coffee first period we might be more motivated and inclined to not bring ours into the school. Teachers do not want to give up this rule and neither do we. The school must either allow everyone to drink coffee or ban it to all people within the high school building. The chugging, wasting of money, and inequality needs to stop.

Sincerely,

Neeve MacGregor

Student of Norton High School