VHS Bans Students from Bringing Starbucks Drinks to School

Many Valencia High School students can attest to the fact that there is nothing better than enjoying a Starbucks iced coffee during a dreadful first period class, or having a strawberry acai refresher to sip on while trying to get through the last class of the day. However, these students will no longer be able to brighten their days with delicious, caffeinated beverages, as Starbucks drinks are now banned on campus. 

On Monday, March 31, the administration posted a message to ParentSquare to inform families of this new policy. The message stated: “As of this Tuesday, the administration is implementing a new policy regarding drinks on campus. Students are no longer permitted to bring Starbucks drinks onto campus. During routine observations, members of our administration have noticed that the presence of these drinks in classrooms has led to several disastrous spills, shortened attention spans, and excessive amounts of trips to the bathroom”.  

Starting today, any student who is caught with a Starbucks drink on campus will have to serve one hour of detention during zero period, which starts at 7:30 in the morning. Repeat violators must also participate in trash pickup duty during their lunch period. Students have been advised to not try to get around the policy by pouring their drinks into other containers, as the detection dogs who are often at school entrances have also been trained to sniff out Starbucks drinks. 

Students across campus are outraged by this policy. Senior Samantha Cazares was confused as to why the administration would take such a drastic measure. 

Cazares told The Viking Vision: “My Starbucks drink makes me happy in the morning and gets me through my classes. A lot of people enjoy Starbucks, and it's so convenient, so taking it away will upset a lot of people.” 

On the other hand, teachers and administrators have expressed excitement for this new policy, as they hope that their students will be tardy less often if they no longer have to stop by the Starbucks drive through on their way to school. 

There are still many questions to be answered regarding this new policy. The administration did not clarify whether teachers were barred from bringing Starbucks drinks onto campus as well, and gave no comment on whether drinks from other chains, like Dunkin Donuts, would be banned as well.