It's About the Process

A friend writes,
"Did you hear the latest at Pioneer? They just announced that next year the 11th graders won't be able to go out for lunch. And the year after that the 12th graders won't be able to."
"Well," I say, "How was that decided?"
"I have no idea."

If you've ever been to Pioneer at lunchtime, you know that it's crowded. Kids used to eat in the halls but that was banned a few years ago, and the 9th graders get the cafeteria, leaving the 10th graders (and those older kids who choose to eat in school) to sit on bleachers in the gym. It's obviously not ideal.
So with the "space" created by the opening of Skyline, what should happen with lunch? Should kids have to eat at Pioneer for lunch?

I don't know if Mr. White is right. I do know that the 9th and 10th graders, in particular, are outraged. For them, it is a taking. I have no idea why, or if, it is a problem to have kids leave campus. Most of us have been letting our kids eat lunch alone since middle school.

I wonder: is this a form of collective punishment? (If a few kids don't come back after lunch, or go out and smoke, should everyone lose the privilege? Why not revoke the privilege for the few? And for that, why wait until next year?)
When was this identified as a problem? Who was brought in on the decision?
Was the PTO part of it? Was the Student Council part of it?

Decision making works best when the process occurs in the light of day.

As for my friend--it's just one more thing that makes her hate the Pioneer climate.