Board pushes back vote on districtwide uniform policy to August

Tag : uniform suit
Board pushes back vote on districtwide uniform policy to August

Jonathan CribbsThe Beaufort Gazette, S.C.
Released : Wednesday, July 02, 2008 4:00 AM
Jul. 2--The Beaufort County Board of Education on Tuesday delayed avote on a districtwide uniform policy until August after severalboard members said the board was pushing the proposal on parentstoo quickly.
The board planned to vote on the policy at its July 15 meeting. Theproposed policy would require all elementary and middle schoolsadopt a uniform policy by the 2009-10 school year. High schoolswould follow suit the following school year.
After four residents spoke -- some in favor, some opposed -- boardmember Earl Campbell said the board was shoving the proposal "downthe public's throat." Board member Reid Eikner also recommendeddelaying the vote.
"We're rushing into something too fast," Campbell said.
Board Chairman Fred Washington Jr., who led the ad-hoc committeethat created the proposal, acquiesced. The vote is now slated forAug. 19 with time set aside for public comment about uniforms ateach meeting until then. The board asked the district to create amore detailed policy, including which students can opt out ofwearing a uniform, possibly for medical or religious reasons.
Washington encouraged board members to meet with constituents aboutthe topic.
Under the proposal, administrators and the school board wouldoutline parameters for uniforms, but elementary and middle schoolswould establish specific policies through individual, school-basedcommittees.
Fifteen of the district's 28 schools, not including theBeaufort-Jasper Academy for Career Excellence, do not have uniformpolicies.
Julie Bell of Hilton Head Island said she was tired of seeing orhearing from her children about girls wearing revealing clothing toschool. She mentioned a boy sporting a blue mohawk at a middleschool graduation. She also said she has been involved with severalcommittees that failed to pass uniform policies at schools on theisland.
"This is not freedom of expression. This is distraction," she saidto the board. "Let (students) express themselves out on thefootball field, the band room, in a writing contest. ... You knowwhat's right. Maybe the parents don't sometimes."
Steven Morello, another Hilton Head Island parent, wearing a pairof geek chic eyeglasses and sporting tattoos on both forearms, saidhe thought expression was important in public schools because hewanted his children exposed to diversity.
"Dress has cultural and ethnic dimension," he said.
Any parent should be able to opt out of the uniform policy, hesaid, and several districts nationwide have chosen to buy uniformsfor their students. The district should as well, he said: "Weshould not place this burden on families that are already at orbelow the poverty level."
Two other speakers said uniforms would do little to improveacademic performance.
Board members also grappled with the proposal. Washingtonrepeatedly said the board does not believe uniforms will turnaround academic performance, but it is one of several measures tobe taken.
"It's not meant to be a panacea," he said.
Board member George Wilson said he intends to vote for uniformsunless someone gives him a good reason not to.
"There's not one study I've seen that says uniforms hurtacademics," he said. "It may help some of those children."
Board Vice Chairman Bob Arundell said uniforms may not be necessaryfor high schoolers.
"If the kid can choose electives that affect their future... wehave to admit the kid needs to make decisions about what (he or shewears)," he said.
Several members, including Wilson, Joan Deery and Jim Bequette,compared schools to the workplace.
"Just about the only time we can wear what we want is when we ownour own business," Deery said. "You don't get to wear what you wantwhen you're working."
To see more of The Beaufort Gazette or to subscribe to thenewspaper, go to http://www.beaufortgazette.com. Copyright (c)2008, The Beaufort Gazette, S.C. Distributed by McClatchy-TribuneInformation Services. For reprints, emailtmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to ThePermissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview,IL 60025, USA.
Provider:
McClatchy-Tribune Information Services / McClatchy-Tribune NewsService / The Beaufort Gazette, S.C.
Keywords:
Education , North American Education , U.S. Education , Top World News , Americas , North America , USA , South Carolina