SCPS updates student dress code policy
Schedule changes, parking lot traffic and long lunch lines are common stresses for the first week back to school, but wearing spaghetti straps is no longer one of them.
After years of pushback and student petitioning, the Seminole County Public Schools Board officially approved the new dress code policy on July 26. This county-wide update now gives students more flexibility when it comes to shirt sleeves, hoodies and hats.
According to principal Robert Frasca, one of the main goals of this rewrite was to ensure equity and fairness for all students. To reach this goal, Frasca worked with students to review the language in the code of conduct, with multiple students getting to speak at the county board meetings to raise their concerns.
“So many people say that dress code becomes distracting, and that is just not appropriate,” Frasca said. “We should all have control over ourselves-that is part of our adult responsibilities, and I look at students as being young adults.”
Although the student body may be excited about these new changes, safety concerns have been raised in regards to hats and hoods being worn on campus. According to the student code of conduct, hats and hoods may now be worn in class as long as the student’s face is visible. This is important for the administration to be able to identify students in case of a security or disciplinary problem.
“We thought some of the reasons that we did not allow hats on campus were a little antiquated, so we started bringing up some conversation there,” Frasca said. “I would hope that students would not take advantage of it and appreciate the flexibility they have been given, and so far, that is what I have seen.”
Besides the allowance of hats, the other major update in the dress code was the permitance of tank tops. According to Frasca, the previous dress code unintentionally targeted more feminine clothing, causing it to be enforced more with female students than male students. Now, any shirt with straps is allowed, as long as the student is covered armpit to armpit. This update has allowed many feminine tops to now be seen as school appropriate, which will likely lead to a decrease in the number of female dress code violations.
“I think the last dress code specifically had codes against females with its strict policy of no midriffs, spaghetti straps or certain short lengths, even though some guys wear shorts of the same length,” senior Ava Manieri said. “I think our new dress code has more options for students to express themselves.”
Despite all of these changes to the dress code policy, many previous rules remain. According to school administration manager Jason Maitland, a large contributing factor to dress code violations is shirts and hats that contain inappropriate language or references to drugs and alcohol. The number of violations is expected to go down, but Maitland knows there will still be some issues.
“I think the dress code has evolved with the times, but when a student chooses to push the limit, they are voluntarily giving up instructional time they may lose by having to be told the consequences,” Maitland said. “You are choosing to take that risk; maybe you will get by, maybe you will not.”
As this new school year is set into motion, Frasca hopes these updates will contribute to the improvement and development of the campus.
“I just think if kids are comfortable in school and class, they are going to be more successful,” Frasca said. “I hope that it allows students a little more freedom, a little more comfort and that it will spin into a much more positive campus culture.”
Your donation will support the student journalists of Hagerty High School. Your contribution helps us publish six issues of the BluePrint and cover our annual website hosting costs. Thank you so much!
