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Derry Area School District board advances draft dress code into formal policy review
Summary
Board members gave a first reading to a revised district dress-and-grooming policy that tightens coverage requirements, removes measurement-based rules and sets progressive discipline; second reading is planned for March and final action in May.
Derry Area School District board members advanced a draft of a districtwide dress-and-grooming policy during a policy-committee report and first read at the regular meeting.
The proposal — identified in committee materials as proposed Policy 2.21, Dress and Grooming — would move the district’s current dress rules from the parent/student handbook into board policy and make several substantive changes. Among them: the draft explicitly says undergarments do not qualify as shirts or bottoms, requires opaque coverage of breasts, buttocks and midriff/torso, and bans most hats and head coverings indoors except for religious headwear. The draft also removes precise measurement rules (such as “fingertip-length” requirements) and replaces them with a principle-based test about exposure.
Policy committee member Mrs. Fendish, who led the review, said the committee had read surveys from students, staff and community members and sought to find a compromise among competing views. “If you can't stand, sit, bend over, or reach above your head without exposing yourself, your private parts, your undergarments, or whatever, then you are not appropriately dressed for school,” Fendish said at the meeting. The committee removed measurement-based criteria because members found them difficult to administer and sometimes unfair.
The draft also spells out disciplinary steps. Students who violate the dress code would be required to change into appropriate clothing before returning to class; parents or guardians may be asked to bring replacement clothing; and the district may provide appropriate clothing when necessary. The draft directs that dress-code violations be handled through the progressive-discipline framework in the student handbook.
Board members repeatedly emphasized the committee’s preference to avoid moving to a uniform requirement but said uniforms remain a potential option if dress-code problems persist. Mrs. Swindish, another committee participant, said the committee “made concessions” but aimed for clearer, enforceable language.
Superintendent Dr. Franzen and district staff also described where the draft lives online for public review. Staff outlined a schedule provided in the meeting materials: this meeting’s discussion counted as the first read, a second read is expected in March, and a final vote is planned for May if there are no substantive changes.
The board did not take a final vote at the meeting; the draft remains in first-read status with the policy committee and staff available to answer follow-up questions.
The draft and meeting minutes are available on the district’s BoardDocs page under Policy Committee materials.
