ST PAUL, Minn. — How long did you get to eat in the cafeteria when you were in school? 20 minutes? 30 minutes?
House File 3556 would require districts participating in a national meal program to give students 15 minutes minimum from when they sit down to eat a school lunch, if approved.
"By putting it into law, I think it makes a stronger statement and makes it so that students have the right to those, at least, 15 minutes," DFL State Representative Sydney Jordan, District 60A, said.
This comes after Jordan says many parents and students reached out, saying they weren't getting at least 15 minutes.
"And I've heard from many students and their parents that while, yes, they appreciate the school meals, that their kids are just not having enough time to eat lunch," she said.
Jordan declined to say what schools this was allegedly happening in, but did say they were both in the metro and rural communities.
Jordan emphasized – this is the floor, and this legislation could be tweaked to include longer times for lunch. Some schools, like Randolph Heights Elementary School in St. Paul, exceeds that minimum, giving students 30 minutes.
"We stagger every five minutes, just because of what we can fit in the cafeteria," Principal Tim Williams said.
Williams knows how complicated lunchtime can be, with tables of kids running in every day. He says even 15 minutes may not be enough.
"Kind of take a deep breath and get their food in and their socialization in is really important," he said. "So, I guess my personal opinion is 15 would be pretty short."
Jordan says she expects this legislation to be wrapped up in a larger omnibus bill. In the House Education Policy Committee, that bill was laid over Wednesday afternoon, meaning it could be discussed again, or later wrapped into another piece of legislation.
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