Pender County Schools reviews staff and student dress‑code drafts; recommends legal references and discipline language be added

Policy staff presented a comparative review of staff and student dress code policies, recommending updates to modernize language, add legal citations and provide clearer disciplinary language.

Staff said Pender County Schools’ current staff and student dress policies are dated (last revised in 2010/2023 in places) and compared favorably and unfavorably with policies from neighboring districts and the North Carolina School Board Association draft. Common themes across reviewed policies were professional attire expectations, supervisor authority, safety and health exceptions, and accommodations for religious or medical reasons. District staff noted that Pender’s current policy is unusually specific in listing prohibited items and explicitly references “casual Fridays.”

Recommendations included: insert legal references such as the Americans with Disabilities Act and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, add explicit consequences for repeated violations, and strike a balance between granular lists of prohibited items and broader, enforceable guidance. Staff cited survey feedback that staff raised piercings and flip‑flops as items to reconsider; parents and students showed mixed preferences between the current policy and proposed, less‑specific policy language.

Ending: staff said they will rework drafts with principals and principals’ feedback and bring updated language back to the board so parents and students can prepare for the next school year. No policy was adopted at the meeting.