Laurel:Why did you decide to become vegetarian?

Nicole: I became vegetarian when I was 13 years old. It was Halloween and there was a documentary on about animal experimentation and factory farms. I saw a cow hanging upside down on a machine and slit open while it was still alive, and the cow just hanging there, twitching.

I decided there was something I could do to stop the suffering. I declared to my mother that I would no longer eat meat. Once I learned about veganism, that became my new aspiration.

What prompted you to nominate Bryn Mawr as a vegetarian friendly school?

I felt pretty strongly that Bryn Mawr College Dining Services (BMCDS) cared about their students' dining hall experience.There are constant surveys conducted to gather student opinions, and there are the opportunities to leave "napkin notes"-- messages responded to by a staff member. Most of these are praise; some are suggestions. On the BMCDS website there is also a link to e-mail the staff with questions and comments. Also. there are "food for thought" meetings, which students can attend and meet with David Chase, the Assoc. Director of BMCDS and other staff members and have their voices heard.

Additionally, BMCDS puts out a newsletter called "May Contain Nuts," which is another way of communicating with the people who eat in the dining halls. I was a member of the Food Committee, so I got to form a relationship with Dave Chase and tell him what I thought of the food from a vegan's perspective. He is a very open guy, and he listened to me thoughtfully.

I am also proud of the fact that we even have vegetarian (let alone vegan) options at every meal. There is always a vegetarian and a vegan entree at dinner, in addition to a salad bar, pasta bar, and certain vegan items in the fridge, such as soy mayonnaise and soymilk. At lunch, there are always two types of soup-- one has meat, and the other is vegan. There is even a vegan bread option.

I also nominated my school because of the great success my animal rights group had with bringing the Great American Meat Out to campus. For the first time, we had an all-veg dinner in one of the dining halls. SO MANY people came to dinner that night. They even made a vegan dessert! This year, the Meat Out was expanded to two dining halls. I only wish we could have more events likethis, because the demand is obviously very high on Bryn Mawr's campus.

The final reason I nominated my school was because we have a special cooperative house on campus. It's an international living space with thirteen students who all share meals and chores (the meals are vegan if there are vegans living in the house, which there has been virtually every year since it opened) I live in this house this year and love it! The house dinners are open to any Bryn Mawr student/staff/faculty and their guests. We get a lot of "regulars" coming who enjoy a little something different from the dining hall food. BMCDS has twice given the Animal Liberation Collective the opportunity to look at the meal rotations and mark our comments about which dishes we (as vegans/vegetarians) liked, disliked, etc. I don't know if they made any changes or not according to our comments, but the intention is right on par with what a college should be doing to make all it's students comfortable.

What do you think the future holds for Bryn Mawr in terms of improvement in the dining hall? What improvements would you like to see?

The improvements I would like to see in BMCDS are mostly along the lines of labeling the veg-options more carefully. The dining hall is staffed by a lot of student workers, as well, who need to be educated about which dishes are vegan. It would also be super-cool if there was a list of ingredients by everything because some vegans don't eat certain things that other vegans do.

The only other improvement would be vegan desserts! It's sad sitting in the dining hall with your friends and watching them scarf down a non-vegan dessert, while knowing there is nothing sweet for you to eat when you like sweets just as much. [A note from Bryn Mawr: "We are pleased to inform you that Mr. Dave Chase made it his mission to do something about this and came up very successful. Much to the delight of not just our vegan and vegetarian population but to the delight of the entire campus, we are now offering a vegan dessert option at each lunch and dinner."]

Also, it would be wonderful to see a wider option of organic foods available. There are a few offered already, which leads me to believe this dream might come true.

What have been the reactions of your friends, both vegetarian and non-vegetarian, to the ample vegetarian food supply?

I think the non-vegan students are pretty content with what is offered in the dining halls. I know of many people who opt for the vegetarian options even if they are not vegetarian/vegan.

My vegan friends seem pretty impressed with the extent that BMCDS has tried to cater to vegans, but, they don't feel the situation is ideal yet. Ideally, there would be a dining hall that was completely vegetarian, and there would be vegan desserts.

Do you have any suggestions for teens who'd like to get more vegetarian options in their own school cafeterias?

Just use the venues that are open to you and be persistent. Make offerings to help, as well. Our group donated a vegan cookbook to our dining hall staff with pages marked on the stuff we liked. Every opportunity you can, use it to make your voice heard. Most of all, you should talk to the actual people who are making your food. They probably would love the opportunity to make your dining experience more pleasant; they just need some ideas on how to do that.