Why a Dining Room?
Source/Author: Mike Murphy, Headmaster
May 04, 2018
Anyone who has ever spent time in a school that had a comprehensive food service program knows that the Dining Room can become a significant source for physical renewal, social/emotional development and community building. Not unlike the benefits of eating with our families, a full-service dining room at a school can create a feeling of community hard to replicate in the casual dining and “lunch box” experience currently practiced at Shorecrest.
There is little doubt in the minds of people who have spent time in schools with full service kitchens and attractive, well supervised dining rooms that once our Dining Room opens at Shorecrest, we will see a change in the way students and teachers across the school interact. There is little doubt that the community will become stronger because of the increased interaction and familiarity with each other.
The quality of the food offered to a school community matters. The variety of choices matters to our current generation and their families. Flexibility, affordability and availability with meal and snack times can greatly enhance the quality of life for the students, faculty and staff. Our plan is to provide high quality foods that students and teachers will like. We expect to have choice and we expect the dining room to be a place all members of the community want to enjoy.
We are aware that everyone will benefit from an education about the responsibilities and expectations for being respectful of the food, resources and the dining space. We are aware that all students and teachers will share in the responsibility in maintaining an environment that is pleasant, clean and attractive.
I am not surprised that the Dining Room is the most sought after space of all the new facilities being added in Transform by members of our community. We are designing the space to ensure that the rooms can be used for a variety of purposes. Beyond lunch, we imagine parent orientations and parent socials. We plan for student activities both before and after school to occur in the space. Students in The Experiential School and Lower School will use the dining room as their home base for extended care. We envision Dinner Theatre and other social events for students and adults.
Finally, we plan to have opportunities for older students to take younger students to lunch. We expect there will be days when parents, guardians, grandparents and other guests will eat with their children and special friends. The blending of the various ages is a major opportunity to strengthen the bonds of our community members.
Transform will truly transform our school. I encourage all members of the community to learn about our plans and then join with other community members who are making pledges and gifts to make the vision a reality for our children, our community and future generations of Shorecrest Chargers.
Cheers!
Mike
P.S. Please save the date for a community groundbreaking ceremony for the Transform Campaign on Thursday, May 24 at 6:00pm on campus.
