Theater of the absurd: Zero Tolerance... Dress codes... (TX)

[salin]

Fair Punishment?
Suspended for Untucked Shirts

D U N C A N V I L L E, Texas, Oct. 4— Thirteen-year-old Raylee Montgomery was walking down the hall at school, when an administrator stopped and pointed out her untucked shirt, a dress code violation.

After Montgomery tucked in her shirt and asked if she could continue to class, she was given a one-day suspension.

Montgomery's mother said her daughter, a straight-A high school freshman, called her in tears.

Teresa Montgomery said her daughter wasn't wearing a half-shirt, a mini skirt or anything else she would consider questionable. Raylee missed a day of school just because her conservative collared shirt wasn't completely tucked in.

------------ snip

Montgomery's daughter isn't alone. At least 700 students have been suspended since Duncanville High School and Ninth Grade Center in Duncanville, Texas, started its zero-tolerance dress code policy this school year. Administrators at the school, which opened with 3,540 students, have been suspending the students for dress code violations since the new school year began in August.

more: http://abcnews.go.com/sections/GMA/US/GMA031004Zero_tolerance_dresscode.html

[Book Lover]

1. One more reason to homeschool (nm)

[karlschneider]

2. If they had pulled any shit like that back when I was in HS in the 60s,

there would have been massive demonstrations, sit-ins, and a LOT of hell-raising.
:grr:

But Duncanville is in the heart of repuke/bible thumping country.

[Cheswick2.0]

3. We would have all worn our shirts out

and would have dared them to suspend half the school.
We clearly aren't teaching out kids enough about civil disobedience.

[HFishbine]

9. Amen Cheswick!

It worked in my junior high when tank tops were outlawed by the new mid-year replacement principal. About twelve of us conspired to wear tank tops the next day. We were all called into the office where we discussed the matter with the principal. He capitulated.

We thought we had brought the big old meanie to his knees, but in retrospect, I think he was a good guy at heart who realized that the benefit of teaching us a positive lesson about the benefits of civil disobedience was greater than re-enforcing adult power over 12 year-olds.

Today's students need to learn the same, but it starts with them.

[Muddleoftheroad]

13. Today

You would all be suspended and, since you organized it, possibly even expelled.

Schools are given no wiggle room between rules and lawyers.

[salin]

15. Not quite true

many districts have policies that have more flexibility. I think the zero tolerance is somewhat about the threat of legality, but it is also coming from the mindsets that prefer : mandatory sentencing (don't let the judges be lenient by taking each case into account), and three strikes (again takes individual situations out of the equation). Each of the policies on the one hand make some sense, but in application create all sorts of problems.

But many districts do not have Zero Tolerance policies - which suggests it is not an absolute that all "HAVE" to, because some don't.

[Muddleoftheroad]

20. Some areas are more litigious than others

When parents make a phone call to a lawyer at the drop of a hat, administrators hide behind bureaucracy. I used to live in D.C. and saw it in that area much more often.

[karlschneider]

17. Exactly. I can't begin to tell the story here but

my "home room" teacher was a penultimate wingnut who actually required us to read (and he promoted the principles in) "The Protocols of the ...Elders of Zion.) A disgusting racist bastard (they could get away with that shit in those days and also require Xian prayer...a couple things that caused my Jewish friends no small amount of concern. Anyway, this guy was such a fuckup, he actually "forgot" to bring the diplomas for everyone in our section to the graduation ceremony. Five or six of us were pissed off and we drove back to the school (Edison HS in Tulsa) from the Convention center, broke down the door and retrieved the whole stack...and carried them back to the CC. We pooled up about $150 to fix the broken door then told Dr. Alexander, the principal, just what we had done, gave the money to him.

Suffice it to say we got our diplomas and not a word was ever said afterward.

This is a true story.

[bluestateguy]

4. I think it's time for me to begin making plans to leave Texas

Crap like this, a legislature that insists on making life a living hell for regualr folks, the re-redistricting scam and a seemingly permanant fascist majority. I don't know how much more I can take.

[Rabrrrrrr]

5. When you have no education platform or any idea what to do,

the repuclican answer is always LOOK like you're doing something.

"See, the reason they aren't learning is becuase we're too lax in how they dress. Now that we're stopping that, I guarantee you that our test scores will go up."


No, it's never the fault of the money spent, or the teachers, or the cirriculum, or the administration. There's always some bullshit "cover" thing that the repukes can fall back on, whether it's "sloppy dressing" or "shirts with logos" or "rap music" or "women in pants" or "men with earrings" or "sex on TV" or "not being able to post the ten commandments".

[Pepperbelly]

6. this zero tolerance crap has gone far enough ...

it's time to take the schools back from this psycho policy. At some point, it is as though we declared war on our own children. It is wrong headed and whoever came up with it needs their ass kicked.

[Muddleoftheroad]

7. As much as I bash public education

Don't blame the schools for this one. Blame our guys the lawyers. If administrators try and exercise any judgment whatsoever, they are accused of discriminating. That's why Aspirin gets treated like heroin. If you take ANY unauthorized drug, you get in trouble. The same with the dress code.

The only way schools can avoid criticism for singling out students is to give them all the same stupid-ass punishments.

[Pepperbelly]

8. it's time to change it ...

because it is as though we have declared war on children. The zero-tolerance policy is an ignorant and abusive of authority as any use of discretion.

Aspirin is not heroin nor is a fingernail file a uzi.

[HFishbine]

10. Right on!

Zero tolerance is the lazy substitute for good judgement.

[Muddleoftheroad]

12. I agree

but how do you enact it and keep administrators and teachers out of court?

[HFishbine]

14. I don't understand

How would a teacher or administrator be dragged into court for exercising good judgement?

[Muddleoftheroad]

19. Discrimination

Happened a fair amount prior to these policies. Now no one can complain that any group is treated more unfairly. They are all treated equally unfairly.

[dsc]

22. I agree

This is a real problem for schools. These policies come from real people filing real discrimination suits. Also many illegal drugs can look like asparin which is why all drugs are banned. I feel this example was absurd but the policies exist for a reason.

[bandy]

11. Well, they sould do that in Fla.

thats one way to reduce class sizes. What a joke!

[George_Bonanza]

16. Not a good way to uphold dress code rules

This is far too severe. An untucked shirt could've been done accidently and unknowingly. Or simply forgotten. We wear uniforms at our school, and unless you're a really infamous slacker who never tucks in your shirt, much less wash it in the first place, you MAY get sent to the office.

[madfloridian]

18. This has gone on in our county for 3 or 4 years.

It has reached that very point, send them home for the wrong shade of Navy, or an untucked shirt.

I was a teacher who never ever referred a child for anything like that. I think that forcing anyone to tuck a shirt in is awful, especially for the heavier ones.

[ButterflyBlood]

21. this equals about 1/5 of the school being suspended

I'd love to see a defense of htis.