Get AI Briefings, Transcripts & Alerts on Local & National Government Meetings — Forever.
Seniors ask Harlandale ISD trustees to allow decorated graduation caps with district rules
Loading...
Summary
Two members of Harlandale High’s class of 2026 asked the board to permit seniors to personalize graduation caps, proposing review rules (no profanity, no political content) and attachable‑only guidelines to preserve district caps. Trustees said they would consider the proposal and suggested follow‑up discussion at a date of the board’s choosing.
Two Harlandale High seniors told the school board on Wednesday that they want the district to allow graduates to personalize their mortarboards at commencement.
"I'm Nyla Freire, and we as the Harlandale ISD class of '26 ask that you consider allowing us to begin the tradition of decorating our graduation caps," student Nyla Freire said during public comment. Freire said many classmates — including first‑generation graduates and students joining the military or workforce — view decorated caps as a meaningful keepsake.
A second speaker, Caitlin Juarez, who identified herself as a soon‑to‑be Harlandale High graduate and active student‑leader, asked the board to permit students who pay for their own caps to personalize them. Juarez brought a sample approval form and said proposed safeguards would ban profanity, inappropriate imagery and political messages and require district approval of designs. "If the board can give us rules and regulations on the designs that we make, then graduates can make personalizations while also representing Harlandale with respect," she said.
Why it matters: The request would change a long‑standing local practice and is a matter of district policy and graduation practice. Trustees signaled interest in further discussion rather than an immediate decision, and the students offered to return to a future meeting to discuss details.
What trustees said: The board chair explained the public‑comment time limit and thanked the students for bringing a concrete proposal. No formal action was taken; trustees indicated they could place the item on a future agenda or workshop for formal consideration and rule‑making.
Next steps: The students asked for a follow‑up discussion at a date the board chooses. The board did not vote on policy at the meeting and did not adopt rules; any change would require an official board agenda item and formal action.
