FORT MILL, S.C. (CN2 NEWS) Parents in Fort Mill say they’re concerned the dress code policy is interfering with education. Thousands of parents have signed a petition saying students, particularly girls, are treated unfairly under the current policy.
“We really try to instill in our house positive body image, and knowing that teachers and administrators comment on our daughter’s bodies is really inappropriate,” says Tara Laymon, whose daughter attends Fort Mill Middle School.
Laymon is a member of group called the Fort Mill School District Dress Code Committee. John Seidman is also a member.
“I don’t want my daughter to grow up having body image issues or concerns about what she’s wearing,” says Seidman, “I also don’t want her to think of herself as a distraction when she’s at school.”
Seidman says the dress code policy keeps both students and teachers from focusing on education.
He hopes the district will consider a new policy, one that says should allow the teachers and educators to focus on educating children.
The Fort Mill School District released this statement regarding the matter:
The district is aware of some concerns about the dress code policy circulating on social media and we are currently reviewing our policy and its implementation to ensure the policy is being applied consistently across all grade levels.
With students transitioning from one school level to the next and our rapid growth rate we understand some students may be adjusting to a different dress code policy than they previously adhered to. Our district policy was last modified in 2017 and is in line with the majority of non-uniform dress code policies across our state. The policy is also designed to be gender neutral and is applied equally to males and females.
If a student or parent has a concern regarding the dress code or its implementation they should contact their principal to share the concern. We welcome all feedback from our community and will continue to make adjustments as warranted.
If you want to review the district policy and administrative rule they are linked below.
Policy JICA Student Dress/Uniforms https://boardpolicyonline.com/?b=fort_mill&s=257155
JICA-R Student Dress/Uniforms https://boardpolicyonline.com/?b=fort_mill&s=257156
