Page 19 - iAV Digital Edition #398

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Students Revolt After Corn Dog Removal
By Ray Carbone
LONDONDERRY – Years from now, they'll be remembered around town as the kids who started the Great Corn Dog Revolt of 2015-16.
It began shortly after the school year started in September. That's when the district's new director of dining services, Amanda Venezia, decid- ed to take the standard American dish – basical- ly, a fried hot dog cov- ered in cornmeal batter – off the school's lunch menu.
As she later explained to the school board, the director opposed serving corn dogs to children because “the nutritional integrity of the product was deemed inferior.”
“The problem with the corn dog is the ingredi- ent list is long,” the school nutritionist explained Friday. “There's a lot of things that go into it, things you can't pronounce. When you can't pronounce it, you shouldn't eat it.”
So the school's lunch crew replaced the popu- lar corn dogs with piero- gies, which are a Polish dumpling filled with pota- toes and cheese.
But the transition did not go smoothly.
No one seemed to prefer the dumplings that were now part of the school's appetizer platter.
And for a handful of Londonderry Middle sev- enth-graders, the switch represented a more sin- ister issue.
“I was kind of disappoint- ed that the corn dogs were not being served,” admitted Derek Stone, the diminutive 13-year- old leader of the revolu- tion, "and they traded
them out for something that no one was real happy about.
“So I said, why do we have to go on eating something we don't real- ly want to eat?” he added.
Stone got together with three friends — Milton Duran, 12, Robert Doucet, 13, and Dylan McEachern, 12 — and started a petition.
“Dear whoever makes the lunch,” it began. “We, the people of Londonderry Middle School, would like to notify you on how we feel about the new dumplings. WE HATE THEM."
The solicitation went on to outline how the new menu item had dis- tressed cafeteria diners.
“The appetizer platter was a favorite until you added those dumping things,” it said. “Please listen to us and hear us because we are very upset you made this change.”
A high percentage of stu- dents were simply throw- ing the dumplings out, according to the petition, and the petitioners asked the lunchroom staff to take note of that. “The numbers don't lie,” they wrote
Slowly but surely, the revolution began taking
root.
The four youngsters began spreading out around the school, col- lecting more than 100 signatures from regular diners — including sev- eral teachers, they said.
The fervor rose to such a pitch that it was recog- nized at public hear- ing, when Budget Committee member James Hooley told Venezia jokingly that some seventh-graders wanted their corn dogs back.
School Board Chairman Steve Young reported that the students hadn't able to change Venezia's mind so they asked “their fathers” to work on the issue at the hearing.
People laughed, but Venezia held her ground, stressing that corn dogs were of “lower nutritional integrity.”
In late October, the peti- tion was handed in and the director of dining services agreed to meet with some representa- tives.
There were some tough negotiations, but the stu- dents did win a major concession — mozzarel- la sticks would be added to the appetizer platter.
And then protesters scored a major coup when they suggested breakfast platters.
“All four of us came up with it,” Stone said. “French toast sticks, waf- fle sticks, pancakes, sausage and hash browns.”
“It's really taken off,” Venezia confessed. “We piloted at the middle school in January and now it's on the menu at the elementary school and the high school. It's one of our more popular items.”
The revolutionaries are satisfied right now.
“We learned that if you stand up for something, it usually works out,” Stone said.
But, up Mammoth Road, the spark that the middle schoolers lit may soon turn into a flame.
“I've heard a rumor that the high school is think- ing about running a car- nival, and corn dogs would be served there,” she said. “It's like, 'Mrs. Venezia is going to be out so let's eat whatever we want.'”
The dining director start- ed her maternity leave recently. So the future of students' eating habits — and their love for the traditional American corn dogs — could be unde- cided in the Londonderry School District for some time.
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