Manor ISD students not allowed at some local restaurants during their lunch

Manor ISD students ousted from local restaurants

Recent confusion sparked in Manor over signs posted outside some local restaurants aimed at Manor ISD students. However, the signs are not recent at all.

MANOR, Texas - Recent confusion sparked in Manor over signs posted outside some local restaurants. However, the signs are not recent at all. 

The signs read: "Important Notice. No Manor ISD students are allowed on the premises between the hours of: Monday-Friday 8am-4pm unless accompanied by an adult. For any inquiries, contact the Manor ISD Police Department…"

What they're saying:

Manor High School students do not understand why they are being singled out and not allowed to eat at certain places during their off period for lunchtime. 

"Restaurants, I feel like they don't really have no say-so, like they don’t have no say-so on what we can and can't do," senior Carl Gant said. "I know it's they restaurant, but like you want customers, we trying to eat. So why not serve us?" 

Derek Munoz recently graduated from Manor High School. He said, "I was a student back then. I graduated in '23, but honestly it's kind of surprising seeing those signs now. I don't think it's really like, I don't think we deserve that." 

"As you get older, that's what most kids look forward to, being able to leave and go off campus and do their own thing during the time that they're able to leave," said senior Nevah Gonzales.  

"I get us coming here when we're supposed to be in class and stuff like that, but during lunchtime, we should definitely be able to eat wherever we want to eat," said Gant.

"If it's just something that happened, why not ban that specific people? Why does everybody have to take up that consequence?" said Gonzales. 

"If I came in there with no backpack and I'm just, you know, just dressed and they asked me about ID, yeah I'm gonna feel some type of way," said Gant. "Cause, like, why are you asking me that? Like, I should be able to walk in here and just get my food."

Parents, adults voice support online

A photo of the signs was shared with the public Facebook group, Manor Community Circle. 

Many of the comments were from parents or adults who are in support of it, and wrote that the school should not allow students to leave for their lunch break in the first place. 

Manor ISD on the signs

Manor ISD sent FOX 7 Austin a statement about the signs:

"For the past year, we have been working with local businesses to help keep students in our schools during the school day and helping promote attendance. If local businesses see our students on site during the school day, they just let our police department know so they can head over and get them back to class. These signs are part of their efforts to help us out."

Manor ISD does not have a policy permitting students from leaving campus to eat lunch, but the district is responsible for the posters. 

The district added in another statement to FOX 7 Austin's Jessica Rivera:

"Manor ISD is a closed campus district, which means students remain on campus during the school day. Students are not permitted to leave for lunch or personal reasons, with the only exceptions being identified and approved academic-related activities. This approach helps keep students safe, engaged and focused on learning.

We are grateful to our local businesses and community partners for their continued partnership and support of Manor ISD. By working alongside our schools, they help reinforce the importance of keeping students on campus during the school day, supporting consistent attendance and student success.

Since this initiative began, we have seen a decrease in student absences, reinforcing the impact of keeping students engaged and surrounded by support throughout the day. Together, these efforts reflect a shared commitment to helping students show up, stay connected and succeed."

Dig deeper:

The workers at some of the restaurants FOX 7 Austin went to say that while there are flyers on their doors, they have never personally turned away a student or asked for ID.