Elham Ayyoubi tried to enroll her three children in public school, but the youngsters protested, thinking their Muslim faith would bring unwanted attention.
"They told me if they go to public school, they would not fast during Ramadan," said Ayyoubi, 44.
For her and other Muslim parents, the Muslim Academy of Greater Orlando in the Lake Buena Vista area "is a dream come true," Ayyoubi said. "My children feel comfortable here."
The private school -- offering pre-kindergarten through eighth grade -- has a new $2.5 million building, which opened last Thursday.
Now, Ayyoubi's kids -- ages 8, 11 and 12 -- don't have to sit in isolation during lunch, watching other students enjoy their meals during Islam's most holy month, which ends in two weeks.
Her two daughters can wear white head scarves without feeling different. The children are reading Arabic and learning about Muslims who have contributed to society.
Students have moved out of the portable buildings that used to house the school into the new two-story facility. At 1:45 p.m. each day, students and teachers walk across the parking lot to the mosque next door for prayer. Meals in the cafeteria cater to the Muslim diet and contain no pork. Students spend about two hours a day on Islamic studies and Arabic language.
"Many community members and parents worked very hard for so many years for this school," said Rafeena Khan, a parent.
This place of their own didn't come without roadblocks.
For eight years, the private school, which charges $4,000 annual tuition, operated in portables on the 7-acre campus of the Islamic Center of Orlando off Apopka-Vineland Road.
After the terrorist attacks of 9-11, board members had trouble raising money.
Imam Tariq Rasheed, the spiritual leader for the center, said people in the community stopped giving because they feared that links to a Muslim project would create scrutiny in the tense times that followed.
School administrators hit another snag with the Orange County Planning and Zoning Commission when the portables were not properly permitted. The school ended up paying $5,000 in fines, which was bargained down from $92,000, said Shoaib Siddiqui, vice president of the center.
Along with the new look, the school has changed its name -- from Buena Vista Muslim Academy to Muslim Academy of Greater Orlando. The school, one of three Islamic schools in Central Florida, has 185 students -- twice as many as it did last year.
The new building also has a science lab and media center where students can broadcast morning announcements. Robin Farlow, a Muslim convert originally from Virginia, has been hired as principal.
Ayyoubi's 8-year-old son, Abdullah Ayyoubi, who is fasting during Ramadan, said he wishes he could go to school every day -- even on the weekends.
"I like everything about the school," he said.
Babita Persaud can be reached at bpersaud@orlandosentinel.com or 407-420-6088.