LUBBOCK, Texas – Sometimes school districts create unnecessary expenses through their own policies. Lubbock Independent School District is a good example, when it comes to restaurant purchases.

“Our district guidelines require us to feed students when participating in events (or) travel of six hours or more, whether that is in the city or away,” Lubbock school district spokeswoman Nancy Sharp told EAGnews.org.

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That policy was responsible for at least two big food tabs related to student activities, rang up right in town.

On Sept. 27, 2016, the Lubbock High School band practiced at the football field across town, according to Sharp. The practice went from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. (note that the time frame was five hours, not the policy minimum of six), according to Sharp.

“A band instructor used a travel card to feed three teachers and 206 students lunch,” Sharp wrote in an email to EAGnews.

The cost? $1,803.90 at Chick-Fil-A.

On Oct. 13, 2016, there was a football game at the field across town in Lubbock. Kickoff was at 4 p.m.

“Students were not allowed to go home due to the 4 p.m. kickoff, so they were provided a meal,” Sharp wrote. “A  total of 189 teachers and students were fed.”

The cost? $1,835.40 at Subway.

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Whatever happened to packing a lunch?

The Lubbock school district currently issues 1,084 travel credit cards to employees, and they were used for a total of 1,491 transactions at various restaurants between July 2016 and June 2017, for an overall tab of $232,918.12

That comes out to an average of about $156 per restaurant transaction.

Folks from the school dined at many different restaurants, but they definitely had their favorites.

By far the top choice was Chick-Fil-A, where there were 141 transactions at various franchise locations for a total of $31,461.65. That comes out to an average of $223 per transaction.

Subway finished in second place in the Lubbock restaurant preference derby, with 88 transactions for a total of $16,811.84. That averages out to about $191 per transaction.

School travel cards were used at Jason’s Deli 62 times for a total of $14,002. That averages out to about $225 per purchase.

Another favorite was Chicken Express, where district personnel had 58 transactions for a total of $13,255.72. That comes out to an average of about $228 per transaction.

Other popular dining spots were Fuddruckers ($9,279,22), McDonalds’s ($7,952.67), McAlister’s ($7,137.64), DoubleDave’s ($6,900.52) and Whataburger ($6,563.65).

There were some huge single transactions on the district’s restaurant log throughout the year.

There was a charge of $1,519.80 at the Chick-Fil-A in Odessa, Texas on Nov. 19. There was a $1,250 tab at Jason’s Deli in Odessa on the same date. There was a $1,280 bill at Jason’s Deli in Abilene, Texas on Nov. 26, and a $1,378.93 tab at a Chick-Fil-A in Abilene on the same date.

There was a $1,792.90 tab at the Chick-Fil-A in Abilene on Nov. 21. There was a $1,914.75 tab at a Subway in Seminole, Texas on Aug. 26.

The list goes on and on – $997 at Betty Rose’s Little Brisquets in Abilene; $1,778.25 at a Chick-Fil-A in San Angelo, Texas; separate tabs of $916.03 and $966,05 at Zentner’s Daughter Steakhouse in San Angelo; and separate tabs of $1,344 and $1,614.31 at a Golden Corral in Amarillo.

There was a tab for $1,452 at Louie’s Backyard Restaurant on San Padre Island, Texas on April 8, 2017.

It appears that school district travel cards weren’t just used for travel meals. They were also used to purchase a lot of food from restaurants right in Lubbock.

Overall, there were 207 transactions at Lubbock restaurants, for a total of $29,105.16. That averages out to $140 per transaction.

To borrow a phrase from the Applebee’s restaurant chain, it appears that the folks from the Lubbock school district have been eatin’ good in the neighborhood.