Three Cony High School students gathered support for more vegetarian, halal and kosher options on the lunch menu. From left, Mohammad Alsaid, Abdullah Aledany and Dreams Hill, at the school on Tuesday. Emily Duggan/Kennebec Journal

AUGUSTA -- Thanks to three boys at Cony High School, students who do not eat meat now have more options in the cafeteria.

The salad bar at Cony High School, shown Nov. 14, now offers vegetarian, vegan, kosher and halal options. Photo by Rachelle Marable

At first the students -- Dreams Hill, 16, Mohammad Alsaid, 17, and Abdullah Aledany, 17 -- just wanted to add halal food to the school lunch menu. But their Jobs for Maine Graduates teacher, Rachelle Marable, suggested they include vegetarian, vegan and kosher options.

They pursued changes to the cafeteria choices based on their own experience, then learned that some of their classmates would not eat school lunches to avoid all exposure to meat products. When they broadened the request, they found other students and teachers wanted more vegetarian and vegan choices.

In just a few weeks the three students circulated a petition around the school in an effort that gathered the signatures of nearly 400 classmates and teachers. They presented their requests to the nutrition staff in mid-October, who agreed to take on the challenge.

"We personally did not think it was going to happen to be honest," Aledany said. "But with the help and support we had, we were happy with the turnout. We didn't think it was possible."

Hill and Aledany, juniors, and Alsaid, a senior, are students in Marable's Jobs for Maine Graduates class, which helps students prepare for life outside of school. Marable teaches students how to prepare for interviews, balance a checkbook and pay their taxes, among other life skills.

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Cony High School staff, shown Tuesday, helped the students with their mission to add vegetarian, halal and kosher options to the school lunch program. From left are Terry Werber, nutrition manager; Rachelle Marable, JMG teacher; and Jody Fournier, nutrition director. Emily Duggan/Kennebec Journal

The class is optional for students, but each high school across Maine has its own program, as do the schools of the University of Maine System.

School nutrition workers can choose what they offer for school lunches, but it must meet the guidelines of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which oversees school lunch program nutritional standards. Those standards mean every meal must have a fruit, vegetable, two servings of grains, two servings of meat -- or a meat alternative -- and a carton of milk. All school lunches in Maine are free for students.

Caprese flatbread and hummus lunch kits shown Nov. 14 are a few of the vegetarian, vegan, kosher and halal options now available at Cony High School. Three students crafted and circulated a petition to increase cafeteria options. Photo by Rachelle Marable

Other school districts in Maine have made the move to include more halal options on the menu, including Portland, South Portland and most recently, Westbrook, according to Maine Public Radio.

Halal is food that is permitted under Islamic dietary law: most food is considered halal, but meat needs to meet specific guidelines. A couple from Saudi Arabia will open Maine's first halal slaughterhouse next year in Unity, where they will butcher meat in accordance with Islamic teachings. They told the Morning Sentinel in September that a prayer must be said before the slaughter and the animal must be given a drink of water. Once the animal is slaughtered it must lie on its left side, facing the direction of Mecca, and no other animals can be around for the slaughter.

"We worked on it in class. They came up with the idea and originally, it was just halal food. We thought, 'That's great, but let's expand it for everyone,' so we thought of kosher, vegetarian, among other things. It's a great learning example that your voice might impact others who aren't using their voice. We used every step of the way as a learning opportunity and they took charge," Marable said.

Jody Fournier, the Augusta School Department's nutrition director, said the push from the boys is what the department needed.

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Fournier said the USDA is starting to help schools incorporate halal and kosher options, but she wanted to also offer vegetarian options.

A school lunch tray shown Nov. 14 at the Cony High School cafeteria. School staff worked with students to add vegetarian, vegan, halal and kosher options. . Photo by Rachelle Marable

Fournier signed up for the Maine Department of Education's Farm and Sea to School program, as well, to get seafood directly from Maine harvesters, as fish is generally acceptable under kosher and halal guidelines.

"We can make fish dishes and chowders," she said. "At first, we were a little gun shy, because we thought of the smell and wondered if (students) would eat it, but after hearing from them, I think it will be a success."

Fournier said the cooks learned how to prepare vegetarian offerings in ways that prevent cross-contamination, so students who are halal, kosher or vegetarian can eat without concern.

Before, staff might have made spaghetti and meatballs with a meat sauce and a regular tomato sauce; now they realize that isn't good enough for students who can't eat meat, either by choice or religion.

"We are learning, too. We are more cognizant. We are not just serving vegetarian pizza, but making it truly separate through different pizza cutters. Things we didn't think about in the past," Fournier said. She said the change does not impact the lunch budget.

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On a regular day, the Cony High School cafeteria serves around 680 students for lunch and 583 for breakfast, but Marable said anecdotally, her Muslim students were not eating because of their concern for cross-contamination by meat in the meals' preparation.

"I have lunch duty on Wednesdays, so I could see students who are Muslim who were not eating lunch, but now they are eating," Marable said. "They sort of recognized that it wasn't that they weren't recognized before, but now there is this special consideration, like cutting the pizza differently so they can enjoy it. Now I see them eating pizza."

The boys did not expect the changes from the cafeteria to extend beyond requests of the petition, and along with other students they have tried new foods that include tuna casserole, veggie burgers, manicotti and taco bowls.

"It feels good seeing other students and teachers happy eating the food. It makes me happy. We walk to lunch and see people taking the food and trying the different options. It makes me feel like we did something," Alsaid said.

They recalled that when they brought the petition to Cony High School principal, Kim Liscomb, she said they could have just asked her without going through the effort, but Marable said the process of showing the boys how to stand up for something they believe in has allowed them to mature.

Other students are seeing that they can stand up for something they believe in, as well, Marable said.

"I've seen them see that they can use their voice for positive change and then the positivity and confidence that can come from it," Marable said. "Knowing the sky is the limit, I truly believe these three can change the world."

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