Las Vegas Sun

March 29, 2024

School Board to discuss changes in dress code

The Clark County School Board will consider changing its controversial dress code regulation Thursday as a result of a federal judge's ruling that several provisions of the uniform policy had the potential to be unfairly applied.

The School Board is slated to discuss the proposed regulations at its regular meeting this week with a final vote scheduled for Aug. 4.

Last month U.S. District Judge Roger Hunt threw out a challenge to the dress code brought by the Nevada ACLU on behalf of a half-dozen parents and students. Hunt granted the Clark County School District's motion to dismiss the suit before trial saying he found no merit in the ACLU's claim that the mandatory uniform policy violated civil rights or was unconstitutional.

The Nevada ACLU has vowed to appeal the judge's decision.

Hunt did, however, strike provisions in the dress code that allowed principals to unilaterally exempt students with religious objections or suspend the policy on special occasions.

Bill Hoffman, senior legal counsel for the district, said the changes to the regulation are based directly on the court's order. A Texas case cited favorably by Hunt as an example of a fair means of determining religious exemptions was used as a template for Clark County's revisions, Hoffman said.

"We're trying to do exactly what the judge told us to do," Hoffman said. "Our goal is to be consistent with his order and understanding of the law."

Under the revised regulation, principals would be able to suspend the "standard student attire" policy for special events such as spirit days. The general districtwide dress code policy, which prohibits certain attire such as baggy pants or navel-baring tops, would apply to students who choose not to participate in the spirit day activities.

The revised regulation also addresses the district's requirements for determining community support for mandatory uniforms prior to a school implementing the stricter dress code. The deadline for notifying families of the change is moved from May 1 of the current school year to May 31 or "reasonable time thereafter."

Given that changes to the district's attendance zone boundaries are not completed until late spring, the original May 1 deadline was nearly impossible to meet, Hoffman said.

"Understandably the board wants to give parents as much advance notice as possible," Hoffman said. "However the time frame has to be realistic from the outset."

In June the district announced plans to implement "standard student attire" policies at 16 campuses had been canceled because parents were not notified in advance of the May 1 deadline.

District Regulation 5131 allows schools to establish "standard student attire" policies as long as families are surveyed and at least 55 percent of those who respond are in favor of stricter dress codes.

Under the "standard student attire" policy students are limited in their choices of fabrics, colors and styles of clothing. Blue jeans are allowed at elementary and middle schools but banned at high schools.

The district first began experimenting with student uniforms in 2001 with a pilot study at a handful of southeast region elementary schools. Since then several campuses in other regions have been added to the pilot study. Additionally 15 schools received enough parental support in a survey this winter to restart their own uniform policies, which were suspended by the district following the filing of the ACLU's lawsuit.

At Lamping Elementary School, one of the original campuses in the pilot study, uniforms have become an accepted part of daily student life, said Principal Michael O'Dowd.

"Participation is 100 percent," O'Dowd said.

Parents who do not want to follow the dress code may request that their children be transferred to another school, provided there is an available seat. Schools are also supposed to provide uniforms to families for whom buying the outfits poses a financial hardship. O'Dowd said in the last year he has given out about a dozen sets of clothing.

At Lamping on Monday, students were dressed in khaki shorts, skirts and trousers with yellow, white or green T-shirts. For Rachel Garman, whose two children attend the campus off Eastern Avenue near the Anthem master-planned community, there's no question uniforms make life easier.

"Getting everybody dressed in the morning is no problem," Garman said. "I may be more excited about it than they are but I think it's a good policy."

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