Effective Monday, March 18, reusable dining products, such as plates and utensils, are no longer permitted for use outside of the Dining Hall Commons (DHC). Upper School Director Noah Rachlin announced the decision during Meeting for Worship for Business on March 13, citing it as the culmination of months of student disregard for school cleanliness and personal responsibility.
Rachlin said that an additional reason for the ban is that SAGE and the school have had to pick up the cost of replacing plastic plates and metal utensils that have gone missing and are presumed to have been thrown out by students. In his address to the Upper School on Wed, March 13, Rachlin said that this amount has accumulated to thousands of dollars.
In an email sent on Monday morning, Dean of Students Will Miller further explained the ban. Miller emphasized that no dishes would be permitted to leave the DHC, and that this procedural change would be enforced by the “kind reminders” of administration or faculty members located near each DHC exit.
Miller also stressed that students should be “prepared to receive detention as a consequence for disregarding this policy.”
In light of this decision, Rachlin said he feels “disappointed” by the student body’s inability to change their actions without administrative pressure.
“It feels like, especially in an Upper School setting, we should be able to clean up after ourselves. The fact that we continue to have issues in that regard just feels really disappointing, because we’re having to devote energy and attention to something that we shouldn’t have to devote energy and attention to,” said Rachlin.
Math teacher Michael Omilian said, “I think it’s about time that [administration] take this kind of action. It’s disgusting, it is a bad precedent for the [school’s sustainability], and in attracting students in the future.”
For students who buy food from SAGE Dining but don’t usually eat lunch in the dining hall, the plan poses an inconvenience. SAGE’s hot food is only served on reusable plastic plates with metal utensils, so students who wish to eat somewhere other than the dining hall now have to choose between either bringing their own lunch or buying from SAGE’s packaged grab-and-go options.
Cloud Blackburn ’25 said, “It affects where I can actually eat. I usually eat in [History Teacher Clark Thomson’s] room … I can eat [in the DHC] and then leave, but it’s still an inconvenience. I can leave, but not with dishes, and I would prefer to eat the hot food.”
Blackburn also noted their other personal duties, such as volunteering with the middle school musical or meeting with a teacher, often take place during lunch, raising further potential conflicts with eating in the DHC. “[These activities take] 45 minutes, so I can’t really miss that time to eat in the Dining Hall,” said Blackburn.
Students who choose to bring food are less affected by this change.
Anna Thompson ’25, who usually eats in the Field House Commons, mainly brings her lunch, and can continue to do so in the upcoming week. However, some of the people who eat with Thompson usually buy lunch. “My friends that normally buy hot meals won’t be able to come with me to the field house during lunch,” said Thompson.
Because of the large decrease in students on campus during Intensive Learning (IL), the ban will be lifted from March 22 to March 29 in light of the shift in campus dynamics.
When students return from spring break, the ban will remain with no set end date. Rachlin noted that, right now, the immediate goal is “to stop what has been an issue, and then we’ll … get to the next step.”
