Boarding school increases weekly costs 33% by charging meals separately, students get even by eating elsewhere: ‘I still don't know who they expected to fool’

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Ben Weiss • Writer and Editor
Jun 26, 2025 4:00 PM EDT

The administrators at this boarding school had the audacity to radically change their pricing structure without the prior input of students and parents alike. You can just imagine the kind of uproar this caused.

Here's the thing about high school: Everyone likes to complain. The students complain about their grades. The teachers complain, rightfully so, about their workloads. And parents complain about everything in between, from the curriculum to after-school activities to the B+ their precious kid received on their history exam. The truth of the matter is that there is always something wrong and while there is only so much a school board can do to rectify longstanding issues, what this particular board did was out of line. When they informed the students that they would be adjusting the weekly price structure in such a way that the net change was a 33% increase, students were quick to deduce that this was complete nonsense. Keep scrolling below to see how they managed to convince the board to go back to the old policy!

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    Cheezburger Image 10522041088
    via Unsplash+ (Getty Images)

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • This anecdote just goes to show that if the student body is united about something, they can, in fact, change the minds of the older folks in charge, despite how challenging it may seem. Here, the students quickly realized after the policy change that it was cheaper for them to just eat their meals in the downtown area rather than consume cafeteria food. This quickly backfired for the school, and in the end, the kids achieved their own victory. 

  • 02
    This is from over a decade ago when I was a student, but it never fails to make me smile even now.
    via Hadomai
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    The curriculum I was in is very particular to my country. It's a two- year intensive program that usually ends in admission to the best schools in the country. This curriculum, like
    via Hadomai
  • 04
    most of its kind, was hosted by a public high school (with a much larger population of high school students), and important part - it was heavily STEM-oriented.
    via Hadomai
  • 05
    This high school, being downtown in a big city in a large area of nothing, had, in addition to the usual lunch room, boarding facilities that were mostly used by students in this curriculum, as the high school population usually lived in town.
    via Hadomai
  • 06
    When I arrived, the price structure was the following: boarding students paid a fixed price of about €62 a week for the room and all meals Monday morning through Saturday morning
    via Hadomai
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    • other students could eat lunch for about €4.30 a lunch, with a prepaid card. Easy enough. (I don't remember the exact prices but it was in this range)
    via Hadomai
  • 08
    In January of my second year, all boarding students were made to attend a meeting about a new price structure that would count everything separately.
    via Hadomai
  • 09
    • The room would be €29 a week, lunch and dinners would be €4.20 a pop, and breakfast would be €2 a pop.
    via Hadomai
  • 10
    The resulting price would be an across the board 2% increase, which "is negligible".
    via Hadomai
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    Key word being "across the board" here. I still don't know who they expected to fool. Obviously good STEM students would figure out instantly that for them, the week would now be €82, so a 33% increase.
    via Hadomai
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    Cheezburger Image 10522042880
    via Unsplash+ (Getty Images)

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

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    There was an uproar. The rest of the meeting was hearing over and over "it was validated by the school board". As if boarding students had any representation there. The parents were too far and the students too busy. And of course other parents and students would approve of what was essentially a discount for them.
    via Hadomai
  • 14
    So we were stuck with the new pricing. Okay. But we don't pay for the meals if we don't go, huh?
    via Hadomai
  • 15
    Remember: the school was downtown. And it appears, the students needed much less the breakfast, lunch and dinner on site where there are tons of options in walking distance at a lesser price. Up to and including stocking up things in the rooms for breakfast.
    via Hadomai
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    The kitchen was DROWNING in stock and BL DING money through the nose. The school being public, buying the food was not a very flexible process they could change week after week.
    via Hadomai
  • 17
    It only lasted a few weeks they came back to the old pricing structure, albeit a little higher (€65 per week I believe). I still call it a win.
    via Hadomai
  • 18
    Archangel4500000 12 hr. ago Ferengi rule of Acquisition #23 "Nothing is more important than your health... except for your money."
    via Hadomai
  • 19
    . harrywwc 11 hr. ago so, more a 5% increase and not the 'negligible 2%' that was actually 33%. nice little. earner if you can pull it off ;)
    via Hadomai
  • 20
    I can almost hear in the back office - "eh, they're just a bunch of kids, they'll never know the difference." (or the equivalent in relevant Euro language ;)
    via Hadomai

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school students malicious compliance petty revenge entitled people karma high school entitled immature high schoolers entitled people
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