SELINSGROVE -- A mother says her 12-year-old son was denied lunch by Selinsgrove Middle School cafeteria workers this week because he didn't have enough money in his account.

"My son was not even offered a peanut butter sandwich," said Lisa Gaugler, of Port Trevorton. "How can anyone look at a hungry child and tell them, 'No food today for you'?"

Her son sat at a lunch table, without food, with his friends. One friend offered him a chip because he felt bad for him, she said.

Gaugler said her son had carried his tray of food to the cashier, who then informed him that his account was low, and he needed to find $1.54 in order to have lunch that day.

He had money in his account, just not enough to cover the full meal, the cafeteria worker said.

The cashier then took his meal and threw it away, the boy said.

"A lot of times, it could be the parents' problem (for not putting money on the account), and the child should not be punished by not having anything to eat," Gaugler said.

That night, Gaugler said she received a recorded message on her phone from the school, telling her to be sure her student's lunch account was up to date. The account requires the parents to write a check to the school. Each student has a specific lunch number.

By that time, it was too late, she said. Her son had already gone all day without eating because he didn't have breakfast, either. By the time he got off the bus at the end of the day, he was starting to feel ill.

A new lunch policy at the middle school began Monday.

"From the start of school up until about March, we feed them no matter what," said Kevin Oswald, director of food services. "As it's getting toward the end of the school year, we've had lots of students at the secondary level who owed substantial amounts."

Elementary students are fed, regardless of payment account status, he said.

Oswald said he was surprised to hear about the complaint, and wondered why he was not contacted by the parent.

"We've covered all the bases," Oswald said.

The announcement in the policy change was included in the middle school students' progress reports and posted online. A full week's notice was given, Oswald said. Announcements were also made every day at the school to alert the students that this was going to happen, so it wasn't a surprise to anybody, Oswald said.