Just got in!

[shadesong]

I spent the morning at Elayna's school registration, manning the Girl Scout sign-up table... wore my leader shirt and insignia for the first time! It went *really* well, too; got over a dozen girls signed up by the time I left (8 brownies! I have a 9-girl troop so far!), and *most* of the moms who signed up said they'd be willing to help out with the troop - one of the moms even has 10 years of experience with the Girl Scouts! I even sold a box of Thin Mints (I had a little display of them to attract people). So I'm feeling really bouncy and positive about this. :)

That was the good, here's the bad: They're doing school uniforms. White or yellow shirts, either turtlenecks or with collars; khaki or navy bottoms. No jeans.

Oh hell no.

You can't just institute a policy like that without a PTA vote and with no notice; this means we all have to go out and buy our daughters new wardrobes before Monday! Umm, hello, not everyone has the money to do that with no notice? Fortunately, we have a gift certificate to Children's Place, but not everyone does. The teachers are pissed off as well, as *they* are going to have to conform to a dress code as well ("Sunday church clothes" is how one of them put it). Why should Elayna wearing jeans and a nice shirt be a problem? Why should her teacher wearing jeans and a nice shirt be a problem? We are *so* writing a letter. And I'm getting a bunch of buttons from the Northern Sun catalog to decorate her backpack and jacket so she can be quietly subversive. Definitely buying the "Question Authority (but not your mother)" one.

Seriously. When it's 20 degrees out, they want my kid in khaki slacks instead of jeans? And she can't wear a sweater? Or a denim jacket? I do not think so. This is *so* not gonna fly.

But *anyway*. Registration and Girl Scout signup went really well. We put the word out that any teachers who want gerbils for their classrooms should call us. Had lunch; read three chapters of "Tales of a Fourth-Grade Nothing" to her (with occasional assistance from yendi. And now I am here. :)

Elayna's off to buy school supplies; they'll then pick yendi and I up from work, and we'll pick up the Girl Scout display and signup sheet and go clothes shopping. And we will collapse, exhausted, after that.

Comments

[mfree.livejournal.com]

Find out who made the policy and then watch them like a hawk...

[amberfox.livejournal.com]

Is anyone planning a protest of the uniforms yet? It's not exactly a minor policy change. Nor is it helpful, no matter what school officials may have been told: uniforms prevent neither violence nor cliques; the only solutions to those are cultural, not physical.

[shadesong.livejournal.com]

I might plan a protest. I'm certainly going to bring it up at the first PTA meeting, and I'm writing a letter to the superintendent.

The paragraph below the uniform requirements further clarified that there should be no midriff-baring tops, miniskirts, see-through clothes, et cetera. *That*, I agree with. Why isn't that a good enough dress code? Why do we need to outlaw jeans and t-shirts?

Re:

[amberfox.livejournal.com]

Exactly. I went to school here in Plano, where our school system has gotten national recognition for its quality.

This is their current dress code, as taken from the PISD website:


Students' dress and grooming are expected to be in keeping with accepted community standards. The following statements are guidelines:
Shoes must be worn at all times.
Students in grades K-2 may wear regular shorts. Students in grades 3-12 may wear shorts but must meet the following standards:
Must be loose-fitting; no biking shorts, cutoffs, boxer shorts or combination thereof.
Must be hemmed or cuffed.
Length must be to the fingertips or longer.
Dresses or skirts must be longer than fingertips.
Tanks tops, tube tops, halter type blouses or mesh shirts will not be permitted.
Sundresses will be permitted if modestly cut. Shirts should overlap the waistband of skirts, shorts, or pants.
Items with provocative, offensive, violent, or drug-related pictures or slogans will not be permitted. Items advertising alcoholic beverages or tobacco products will not be permitted.
No hats, caps, bandannas, hoods, wallet chains, or sunglasses.
No type of clothing which has been torn or has holes will be allowed.
No sagging pants or shorts.
No gang paraphernalia.
No visible pierced jewelry other than earrings.
All students are expected to meet community standards and school policies with regard to health, cleanliness and appearance. All safety rules must be obeyed.


FNCA (Regulation)
Uniforms or other unique situations may be dealt with by the individual campuses as long as it does not violate policy. For example: if a school considers uniforms they must adhere to the following guidelines:

Must have at least 80% approval of parents
Must be approved by School Improvement Committee
Must have School Board approval


Seems to cover everything. I wouldn't even mind it being looser, personally, but I don't think any reasonable person should have objections to this.



On a lighter note, I saw part of Michael Moore's newest documentary, "Bowling for Columbine", when he was here earlier this year. In one part, he shows a sales video from a school uniform company. A middle-school-aged boy, probably around 13, pulls enough weapons out of his baggy jeans and t-shirt to cover an entire table, including several knives and a shotgun. I suspect that sort of propoganda is behind the recent resurgence in school uniforms.

[shadesong.livejournal.com]

Right, I have no objections to that kind of dress code. But my daughter can't wear her nice black slacks? Will she be sent home for wearing her Girl Scout uniform on meeting days? Ludicrous.

I need to do some research on whether they can legally enforce this, or whether they need a vote...

[m0usegrrl.livejournal.com]

yay on the 9-girl Brownie Troop!

boo on the fascist uniform policy!

[shadesong.livejournal.com]

9 girls *so far*.

Picking up the registration materials after work... I'll give you our grand total tonight!

[m0usegrrl.livejournal.com]

cool! ::poing!!::

recent sayings...

[wolfieboy.livejournal.com]

I recently saw a bumper sticker that said "Question Authority! Don't ask why. Just do it."

[edie22.livejournal.com]

I would so protest the dress code. I *hate* being told what to do. Just because. PROTEST!!!

You could be like that girl, in PCU with the sign.

[deza.livejournal.com]

Actually, I understand the reasoning behind the dress code. There was a student that came in here the other day with a 4 inch long, 1 inch wide gash in the front of his jeans, next to the fly. His dark-blue boxers were clearly visible. When I mentioned the condition of his clothes, his response was "The dress code says they can't be torn or frayed in the seat. This is fine." And then there was the kid with a long, neat t-shirt that read "In case of fire, pull hose" with an arrow pointing at his crotch--also within the stated limits of our code. It only takes a few people with that attitude before stricter dress codes start seeming like a very good idea.

That said, springing the uniforms on parents with no notice, and without allowing the parents to have a say in a highly-charged issue, really REEKS. The school politico who proposed the Surprise Policy get's Deza's Limberger Award for the term. :(

[shadesong.livejournal.com]

Yeah, dress code I'm all for - forced uniforms I'm not. :(




P

[crimmycat.livejournal.com]

is that the " stuffing the limbergher in the radiator or in the vent for the fan so the car stinks to high heaven for the entire f' ing winter award,

or just the "boo and hiss from a distance" award?

wait, did I type that? should I make this anonymous? this has never been done! certainly not by my mother! I gave no ideas!

Re:

[deza.livejournal.com]

Option A.

*walks off whistling innocently*

[auryn29a.livejournal.com]

For some reason, I read the first line as "wore my leather shirt and insignia for the first time!" I was thinking a t-shirt with a bdsm flag. That probably wouldn't have gone over as well.

[shadesong.livejournal.com]

Heh. No one but me would've known what it meant anyway....


2

[technomom]

I'd heard about a month ago that the next county over was going to uniforms this year, but I figured they would have informed parents earlier. I know a fair number of faculty and staff members in Gwinnett who want school uniforms there, too.

I've got mixed feelings about it. R is 13 and still wearing his jeans out at the knees - I don't think khakis would last as long. And khakis show stains much more readily - G is really bad about getting stains on her clothing. Ditto for light-colored shirts - that's a nightmare.

But G also has yet to learn how to dress herself properly so that her clothing matches and is appropriate to the occasion at hand, and uniforms would end the daily "no you are not wearing that to school!"

And hey - they're in a government school. Wearing uniforms just makes the required conformity more overt instead of covert as far as I'm concerned. (I know Miss Kid is in one that does Montessori-style stuff, but R and G are not.)

[shadesong.livejournal.com]

Yeah - white shirts? On elementary schoolers? What on earth are they smoking?

I