Correction: We have updated the student and faculty/staff population.

For the past few years, teachers at Marymount have had the benefit of getting free lunches from the Marymount Dining Program, most recently, SAGE. However, this teacher privilege was taken away at the beginning of the school year; therefore, our teachers now have to bring their own lunch or buy one from school. This seems very strange to me, as a student who has attended Marymount for four years and is so accustomed to seeing my teachers in the lunch line. I personally feel like this takes something special away from Marymount. 

I understand how expensive it must be to provide lunches for over 350 students and 70-80 faculty members, but I think that it is a nice inclusion to show teachers our appreciation and how much they are valued in the school. 

After speaking with multiple teachers to find out their thoughts and opinions on the matter, it became clear that they understand why included lunches were taken away, but at the same time, they are upset that this is not an added perk to working at Marymount anymore. 

One of SAGE’s most enthusiastic fans, an unnamed teacher, feels nostalgia when walking through the dining area as he genuinely enjoyed the food and felt grateful for the option to have a fresh, warm lunch every day. Another unnamed teacher also stated that it is a difficult adjustment, as they do not have the time to prepare a lunch every day. Additionally, teachers do not want to have to buy lunch every day, as they feel as if they are students again. I think that showing appreciation to those who do so much for us is extremely important, and I think providing free lunches to teachers is a very nice way to show them how valued they are.