Kissed out of school: two Maryland high school students drew more attention than they expected when they staged a same-sex kiss in the school cafeteria.

Stephanie Haaser and Katherine Pecore knew they'd have the full attention of everyone in River Hill High School's cafeteria when they stood atop a lunch table, shouted "End homophobia now!" and then kissed. What the two Clarksville, Md., students--who are both straight--didn't know was that they'd soon have the attention of the nation.

The November 5 lip-lock, performed as a project for Haaser's English class, in which students were instructed to perform a nonconformist act, earned each of the 17-year-old students a two-day suspension and attracted a national media blitz. Haaser devised her protest to call attention to the countless homophobic comments made by students that she says get ignored by most faculty. "People are asking, 'Do you really feel this is a problem?'" Haaser says. "The student protests and petitions [against homophobia] while I was out show that it's not just me."

The school's principal, Scott Pfeifer, says the girls were disciplined solely because they caused a disturbance. "There isn't a high school in the country that would let students, regardless of gender, stand on a table and make out without disciplinary action," he says. "Appropriate behavior and homosexual rights are separate issues."

After the suspension, Haaser, a junior with a 3.88 cumulative grade point average, was told that her newly besmirched record would likely prevent her from entering the National Honor Society. However, a meeting of school officials in mid November--and perhaps all the media coverage--brought about a change of heart, and Haaser will be inducted into NHS with her classmates in February.

Long-term consequences also seem unlikely for Pecore, a senior with SAT scores of 1,600, the highest possible. Both girls intend to stay committed to fighting homophobia by working with the local chapter of Parents, Families, and Friends of Lesbians and Gays and with the Rainbow Youth Alliance. Haaser, who is surprised but delighted by the attention they've drawn to the issue, says that despite the punishment, she would do it again. "I'm working to ensure the enforcement of a new state law," she says, referring to the Maryland Board of Education's recent extension of harassment protection to gay and lesbian students. "And it cannot be overruled by some principal."