It has certainly been a busy past couple of weeks for students at Ledyard High School. Fall sports have been winding down and many athletes are surely experiencing withdrawal. Many have been scrambling to raise that B+ to an A- for the end of the quarter. And now, on top of everything else, the prices some vending machines at the high school have been dramatically increased. Favorites including Lay’s chips and M&Ms are now significantly more expensive.

The vending machine company who has raised their prices is Lathrop Vending, who controls all vending machines outside of the school’s cafeteria. This company recently raised the prices in Ledyard’s vending machines as much as 25 cents. Items now cost up to $1.35, a price many students feel is too high or too inconvenient. “I don’t like how they raised the prices,” junior Richard Mullaney said. “Because who carries around a quarter with them at all times? It’s simple to carry a dollar with you.”

Whatever the reason, the student body is not pleased. Junior Nathan McCracken said, “I think it’s pretty outrageous.” His sentiments were echoed by other students as well. “This is an insult to my wallet,” sophomore Erin Healy said. Freshman Lexi Stehle said, “Boo! I like food and I like cheap food.” Freshman Jacob Rankowitz put it simply — “Outraged.”

“It’s one more hassle for students after school,” junior Shelby Olsen said. Athletes like Olsen feel particularly targeted by the increase in prices. They are the ones who rely on the vending machines the most. The snacks keep them alert and satisfied for practice or games after school. “Athletes go through rough long days, I know I’m always hungry on my way to practice. Not having enough change for a granola or candy bar has happened before with the [past] prices. If I have to spend even more this season, I’ll probably stop buying altogether,” Olsen said.

Some students are taking the news with a get-more-bang-for-your-buck mindset, planning to stop buying from the vending machines altogether. “I personally think I will just buy from the cafeteria,” sophomore Sara Tomis said. This probably won’t affect Chartwells, because they cater the cafeteria food as well. But for the private company running the other vending machines, this will likely hurt business.

Correction: In the original posting of this article, we incorrectly reported that Chartwells was the company in charge of all the vending machines throughout the school. The company in charge of all vending machines outside of the cafeteria is Lathrop Vending. The Colonel regrets the error, thank you for reading.

Rachel Kane, Staff Writer

Junior Rachel Kane is a staff writer for the 2016-2017 Colonel. Aside from playing varsity soccer and tennis, she is also the secretary of Tri-M and dances outside of school.