The 2022-23 year has just begun, and with a new year comes many changes to the campus. One of the latest additions to the school is the high-tech finger scanners found in the cafeteria lunch line to speed up the process.

The technology will “make it easier for students and will reduce the amount of time needed to check ID”. The biometric identification system utilizes software that creates a template of the unique points on the finger and stores the individual templates of each student. The goal is to make purchasing meals easier for students and staff. Martin stressed that the system does not collect fingerprints. When students leave the school the files are deleted.

Some students are finding the new system very helpful for when they forget their ID, or simply don’t like the hassle of taking it out of their bag.

“It’s great. You just use your finger and go, you don’t need to take out your ID,” senior Diamitri Inouye said. 

The software is safe, and the student information is protected and secure. But there have been some issues when buying meals with the finger scanner. 

“The only downside I heard about is if you leave your finger on it for too long, it will charge you for a second lunch,”  senior Nikaela Anne Rodriguez said.

Teacher Matthew Pounds, who helps in the lunch line confirmed this and chalked it up to it being a new system.

“It’s getter a little faster in some ways,” he said, but if the students are having a difficult time scanning their finger, then “it’s still slower than typing their name.” 

Pounds said some students get through the line quickly and others have to make several attempts before the system can identify their biometric imprint. 

Students who opted out of the biometric system but forgot their ID at home can still buy lunch by providing their name or 10-digit number to the cashiers.