Westside High School students and faculty were recently greeted with a new addition to the courtyard: a glass barrier with two doorways and several panes facing the entrance to the school. According to Principal Jay Opperman, the new addition is intended to extend the courtyard while also encouraging students to keep food inside of the area.

“We’ve had mods, last year even, where it’s jam-packed in the courtyard during lunch,” Opperman said. “Food going out also tends to attract little critters, we want to make sure that the only food going out is for students who truly do not have any mods to eat lunch in a day.”

Opperman said that the idea for the new addition was presented last school year.

“Our administration team had the idea last year,” Opperman said. “We did an experiment where we added standing tables as a quick way to add space. Our main goal with the whole idea was just to add onto [the courtyard].”

Opperman said that he is pleased with the way the new addition turned out.

“I think it’s had a nice side effect of helping with the noise between the front entrance and the courtyard, which we didn’t consider while making it,” Opperman said. “It’s also been nice towards the end of lunch because people are anxious to get out of the cafeteria; it helps to keep people in the courtyard. We can’t have 300 people packing up there at the end of the mod.”

Contrary to Opperman, sophomore Tori St. Cyr said that she dislikes the new addition to the courtyard.

“I think [the entrance] should be open, or they should at least keep the 10-minute rule,” St. Cyr said. “I don’t think it’s going to prevent people from taking food out, they can just sneak it out in their pockets or something.”

 An individual at Westside High School that wished to remain anonymous felt similar to St. Cyr about the new addition.

“It’s too small of an area,” the individual said. “Some people have anxiety issues, students included, so I don’t like it; [I think] it makes the area worse. I don’t think it’s going to help with security, the doors don’t lock so [students] can leave anyway if they really want to.”

Sophomore Dori Watanabe said she has mixed feelings about the new addition.

“I like the idea of having a [mix] between an IMC and a cafeteria, so you can eat and study,” Watanabe said. “But I feel like the walls and windows blocking us is very unnecessary.”