Many students eagerly await lunchtime as a break from class and a chance to see their friends, but for some lunchtime is a dreaded period because of the loneliness they experience during it. School Climate Advocate Magaly Ruiz realized this and started No One Eats Alone as a way to combat this and help students. 

“We wanted to provide a day where if the students wanted to hang out with people, they could come, all of them could come to an area where we all would interact and maybe they could make new friends,” Ruiz said. 

Ruiz noticed that there were a few students who didn’t really have a group of friends that they were hanging out with, and were eating lunch alone. Oftentimes, new students come from other schools and don’t know any students, and have no one to spend lunchtime with. The aim of No One Eats Alone is to have a day where that doesn’t happen—where you can eat lunch, talk and play Jenga with your peers. No One Eats alone is held every Thursday during lunch in the grove.