Little Hawk Journalism was banned from making popcorn Friday after accidentally setting off the fire alarm Thursday morning. 

The popcorn maker, which has been a staple in Room 3108 for years, will be missed. It saw regular use from all journalism classes, and students often enjoyed freshly popped popcorn while working.

“I’m distraught,” Foundations of Journalism student Bones Kalina ‘28 said. “It was one of my favorite parts of Journalism. I looked forward to it every day.”

After poor handling of the popcorn machine led to numerous all-school emergency fire alarms, City High administrators decided to remove the popcorn machine from the media room. It was locked in the closet next to Room 3108 Friday during fourth period.

“We’re going to pause popcorn production at the school that leads until we can devise a strategy that will not set the fire alarm off,” Principal John Bacon said. “It has been the culprit [of school-wide evacuations] multiple times.”

The decision to remove the popcorn machine was met with reluctant agreement.

“It was a sad day in 3108,” journalism advisor Jonathon Rogers said. “But I understand the concerns for setting off the fire alarms. We are now in discussions about finding an alternative for popcorn.” 

Goldfish has been considered, as well as a variety of Costco snack options.

The evacuation caused by the popcorn machine Thursday morning was one of three false fire alarms within two days. The alarm was set off Wednesday morning, and it was triggered again by burnt food in the kitchen oven halfway through fifth period Thursday.

“It’s like ‘Boy Who Cried Wolf,’” Jillian Conlon ‘26 said. “One of these days, there’s going to be a real fire alarm and no one’s going to believe it.”

Temperatures during the week’s evacuations were around fifteen degrees Fahrenheit. Students didn’t have proper weather gear because they were required to leave the building immediately and couldn’t grab coats or gloves from their lockers. This year’s spring musical—Frozen—echoed what many students felt while evacuating.

“Tell me why we’re evacuating when real life Jack Frost is nipping at my nose,” Daige Sabin ‘26 said.

But Principal Bacon was primarily concerned about how fire alarm evacuations affect student learning.

“If we’re going to make popcorn, we’re going to have to find a way that does not set the smoke alarm off,” Bacon said. “We don’t want to see 1,700 students’ learning environments disrupted.” 

Opinions on the decision to remove the popcorn machine were mixed. Some students agreed that Little Hawk Journalism mishandled their use of the popcorn machine and the consequence was justified.

“I’m rather neutral,” sports editor Rito Perez ‘26 said. “The popcorn hasn’t been good since the burger seasoning was taken away, and we did set off the fire alarm. I haven’t eaten the popcorn since February of 2025.”

However, some journalism students argued that the popcorn machine shouldn’t have been taken away.

“The benefits [of the popcorn] outweighed the negative,” Foundations student Chris Davis ‘26 said. “I enjoyed some popcorn during class.”

The Little Hawk Journalism popcorn machine was infamous to City High students for setting off the fire alarm before official action was taken.

“Everyone knew that it was constantly setting off the smoke alarm, so deep down, we knew it was a system that was set up to fail,” Grey Linley ‘26, who is not involved in Little Hawk Journalism, said. “I just think it was a bad idea to have a popcorn machine in the first place.”