by Maylah Beacham

The Issue: Imagine this: it’s lunchtime, and earlier that morning you forgot to pack your lunch. You wouldn’t dare to eat the school lunch. You’re upset and hungry. Until you almost walk into the cafeteria and see three vending machines to the right of you. One of them has one of your favorite snacks, Doritos. You check your Apple Pay; you still have $2 left from that shopping spree you went on that weekend. You punch in the numbers, and it reads: 1.50 + .15. You think, “Just enough.” You go to register your card to pay when you get stopped. “You can’t use the vending machine during lunch!” the teacher states. Now, you’re disappointed, annoyed, and even hungrier.

What This Means: Even during class transitions, you can’t go to the vending machine. Sometimes it’s because you wouldn’t have enough time, teachers, the vending machine is off–showing a warning sign– or literally unplugged, or your snack got stuck. There have been so many instances where my snack got stuck. One time it happened twice in a row. My friend had to buy three bags just yesterday to get it unstuck. In addition, the school gives a supposed “remedy” to get it unstuck, but it doesn’t work. And, you think this would be the best time to get a snack. I’m not saying it will never happen, but for it to happen this often, and then we get in trouble for it, is a major problem.

My Take: This is a reality for most students at North Springs. We can’t get snacks during lunch or transitions; our items get stuck or don’t dispense, and sometimes we lose money. So many vending machine problems prevent us from simply getting a snack. My main argument is not to remove vending machines or blame teachers; we just need machines that work properly and rules that allow students to use them reasonably. Like, when we need food, especially during lunch or transitions.