My school’s proposal and my response

At the start of this year, my school disctrict has made a new policy for dress code. It’s still in review, and it would replace the current one. They have a website where parents can fill out a survey and provide feedback for this proposal.
As it stands, our current dress code is:

All color ranges of Henley, polo, or rugby shirts are permitted (striped or solid).
1.  All color ranges are permitted (solid or striped)
2.  Approved styles are:
9  Collared polo shirt
9  Collared rugby shirt
9  Turtleneck or mock turtleneck
9  Henley shirt (RRHS: no more than 4 buttons)
9  School Spirit T-Shirts (must have principal approval)
9  Must be long or short-sleeved (not sleeveless)
3.  Must be cotton or cotton blend (no see through material, no shiny material, no denim material)
4.  Insignias can be no bigger than 3 inches by 3 inches
Note:  No shirts of any other styles except those listed above are allowed.  No skin should be shown between the bottom of the shirt/blouse and the top of the
pants/skirt when arms are stretched upward.  Shirts worn out can be no longer than fingertip length.

Then pants are just basically Blue Jeans, or Khakis.

The proposed dress code is any shirt, as long as it isn’t “disruptive, racist, sexist, promoting drug abuse, sexual, or any derivative thereof,” and doesn’t contain any logos bigger than 3in x 3in.

Here is what I wrote as the response:

The purposed dress code is more efficient than the current dress code. As it stands, families are in financial hardship. Prices of the shirts that are dress code easily run $8/shirt. Even at Walmart. The efficiency of the students being able to wear regular t-shirts is huge. We don’t have to spend 100 dollars at the beginning of each school year.
Also in regards to the original intention of preventing gang activity, and the other behaviors relating thereof, school dress code is not going to prevent any crime. If it does, it would not be a large number. Gangs are usually organized. Organization is working around obstacles. The school probably was an obstacle, so that suffices to say that this organization took place outside of the school.
Naturally, the Administration works against this crime on campus. This is obviously within their duty. But in reality, they don’t have much jurisdiction after school hours.

~ by jbell2 on January 20, 2009.