Wilsonville High School keeps their doors open for lunch. Students are free to eat lunch on campus, or they can go out and buy lunch. 

Wilsonville’s students fall up and down the spectrum in terms of cost effective purchases. Junior Gedde McKnight says he spends under $10 per week. When asked how he does it, he boasts his high “CPD,” (calories per dollar) lunch of choice, “I go to Costco for the hot dog. It’s like over 700 calories, for only $1.50. It has a ton of protein too.”

To McKnight, it’s justified to spend $10 in a given week because he’s maximizing the value of his calories per dollar– the hot dog simply packs a stronger punch, protein wise, than anything he can make at home.

He goes on to compare his purchasing habits to those of other students, who, for example, spend his weekly $10 in a day (for food and a drink). He explains that his way is more efficient.

Theo Buchwald, a senior, chooses to not spend money at all during lunch. He says, “I don’t have the money to go out everyday. I’m unemployed. Why not just pack a lunch!”

He went on to note that an occasional purchase is fair, but shouldn’t necessarily be a daily habit. However, plenty of students go out to eat everyday, when they could be saving money like Buchwald. While he’s not necessarily worried about his calories per dollar, he does share McKnight’s focus on saving money.

Many students of course are not as conscious of their spending habits as McKnight or Buchwald.

Since we have the freedom to go out for lunch everyday, it’s our job to self regulate and decide if going out is truly what’s best. Is it really too hard to pack a lunch, or to hold off on going to Dutch Bros?