By CHET BROKAW , Associated Press
EAGLE BUTTE, S.D. - Carol Moran spent all she could spare on new school clothes for her 15-year-old daughter. Then she found out a new dress code had been imposed at the junior high school that serves the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe. Moran, who walks with a cane and survives on welfare in one of South Dakota's most impoverished regions, said buying a whole new set of clothes is out of the question. Her daughter, Kyann, already has been sent home twice for violating the dress code since school started two weeks ago. "It was just like a slap in the face," Moran said.
Unexpected school expenses can stress any parent. But for many with students in the Cheyenne-Eagle Butte School District, finding gas money or a ride to an affordable store can prove all but impossible, much less paying for the clothes if they get there. More than half of the people there lived in poverty in 2005. The nearest discount store, such as Wal-Mart or Kmart, is about 90 miles away in the state capital of Pierre.
Moran and other parents have joined the tribe in a federal lawsuit seeking to block the school district from enforcing the dress code, which requires students to wear black, white or tan shirts, pants, skirts or shorts. Administrators say it is intended to avoid gang violence. The lawsuit argues the dress code violates federal regulations requiring such schools consult with tribes and parents of American Indian children in developing programs and policies.
Tom Van Norman, the tribe's attorney, said the dress code is not only a hardship for struggling parents but also an impediment to educating the children who are taken out of class and sent home or placed in a time-out room. The dress code was publicized in the local weekly newspaper earlier in the summer, but many parents did not learn of it until receiving a packet of information about eight days before school started, Van Norman said. Classes started Aug. 27 and the tribe sued Sept. 1.
Bureau of Indian Education Supervisor Nadine Eastman, explained the dress code in a letter published Aug. 6 in the local newspaper, the West River Eagle. "The purpose of the Uniform Dress Code is primarily to alleviate much of the gang-related violence in the school," Eastman wrote. "Many of our Junior High students wear gang-affiliated colors to school daily. Secondarily, we hope that an increase in safety will increase our academics for all students."
Winona Charger, whose grandson Justin Little Star has been suspended for violating the dress code, said she has seen little evidence of a gang problem. She said the schools should spend more time and money improving academic achievement. "They're not teaching our kids. They're worried about what they're wearing to school. That's what makes me angry," Charger said.
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I think this is not fair!! Especially since Carol Moran spent all that she could so that her daughter could have new school clothes. And then to find out that there was a new dress code imposed! Moran says most people in the Cheyenne-Eagle Butte school district live in poverty and don't have gas money to get to the nearest discount store... her daughter Kyann was sent home from school twice just in the first two weeks of school for violating the dress code. Its not like she's violating it on purpose! her mom just doesn't have the money to buy new clothes ... I think they should go back to the way it was before... if there having problems with kids violating it instead of being jerks about the dress code and sending them home.
ReplyDelete-Tiffany Murray
Personally, i think it's unfair because not every family can afford the expense of the uniform."If we don't have enough money to pay for the uniform we'll be kicked out of the school",that is what students will think about.Do you think it's good for student's education?Pay for school uniforms again and again,it can be a heavy economic burden for some parents.And the reason of this is only preventing violence,isn't it a silent violence for some family?To prevent violence,they can do better.
ReplyDeleteI also think it is NOT fair...
ReplyDeletePurpose of school to prevent the gang-related violence is not bad but I think that they have to be more worrying about educating kids than concerning what they're wearing.
Strict school dress code that accompanies unexpected expenses may stress not only any parents but also students. I'm afraid it rather works to a bad direction.
-Edan Uhm
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ReplyDeleteIn my opinion the idea of a dress code is really good because it may prevent the mentioned gang-related violence at school. Another reason it that there would be no difference between pupils with poor parents and pupils whose parents have more money.
ReplyDeleteThese differences influence the education, too. But I agree with the comments that it is not possible for everyone to buy expensive school uniforms. Perhaps the dress code rule would have more success if all pupils just wear the same shirt with the school logo on it or clothes with certain colors.
I also think this is unfair for the families who are not able to afford school uniforms. In Beijing China I had to wear a school uniform everday. I didn't see any gang violence but I don't think it was because of school uniforms. If people are going to be looking for violence or crime in or out of school, they aren't going to let a uniform stop them. It seems unfair to keep someone from getting an education because their family cannot afford uniforms.
ReplyDeleteI also think this is unfair for the families who are not able to afford school uniforms. In Beijing China I had to wear a school uniform everday. I didn't see any gang violence but I don't think it was because of school uniforms. If people are going to be looking for violence or crime in or out of school, they aren't going to let a uniform stop them. It seems unfair to keep someone from getting an education because their family cannot afford uniforms.
ReplyDeleteI think that just an idea of dress code is really good, but in practice it doesn't look fair. One of major advantages of wearing uniforms at school is that, indeed, in that situation all students looks similar. That is what Gisa said, there aren't any class, we can't know as well who has a lot of money and who is quite poor. What's more, students look appropriate. However, we should matter about poor children's families which can't afford to buy uniforms. According to this article, we can notice that sometimes it can become a huge problem like for Carol Moran and her daughter. In my opinion it would be great if students could wear uniforms, but if they couldn't they shouldn't be sent back home. I also think that the school in South Dakota ought to organize some financial help for the poorest students, if it is as important for them to follow these uniform rules. I agree with Kevin(peng.l7) that wearing the same clothes isn't the best way to obey the school law. Generally I don't think that what Kyann Moran did is a serious offense, and I'm sure there are a lot of worse things that should be given more attention as far as school policy goes.
ReplyDeleteI think this is VERY unfair. Students should have more of a variety to wear to school then just black, white or tan shirts, pants, skirts or shorts. The school should have done a better job at least 6 months before school started and made sure that all of the parents and students knew about the new ridiculous dress code, so that parents and students wouldn't spend a lot of money on school clothes that they can't even wear to school. I think that all of the students should gather up and all either: a) transfer to a new school or b) go homeschooled, because that dress code is ridiculous. I also think the school did a crappy job in how the students who violate the code are punished. They could at least gave the students a couple of warnings, until everyone knew about the new policy, instead of sending students home, putting them in a time out room, etc. I honestly think that was the dumbest policy a school could do and the school staff have no idea how to run a school.
ReplyDelete-Aaron Knudson
I understand what the school is trying to do with the dress code, but I think the way they went about it was not totally correct. It sounds like most of the people who live there aren't happy with the dress code, or the fact that it wasn't well publicized. This could cause students and parents to be angry with the school district and that anger could turn into violence of different forms, which defeats the entire purpose!
ReplyDeleteI also think that if students aren't following the dress code entirely, but aren't doing it to be rebellious and their clothing isn't gang-related, it should be let go. In cases like this, it could be all they have!
ReplyDeleteI think that a dress code is ok if you absolutley need one. If kids are wearing gang related clothing they should probably have a dress code. If only just a few kids are doing it they should be sent home to change but if a lot or most of the kids are doing it then a dress code should be inforced. Other than that a dress code is just going to be a pain to inforce because i know most kids are going to hate the idea of having a dress code. Kids want to express themselves. They want to have their own style. Unless the clothing is a real big issue then just let it slide or single the specific individual or individuals out and make them change.
ReplyDeletethe dress code for that school is dumb. The parent went to buy there kids school clothes and about two weeks before their school started. the parents couldnt buy the right colors for the dress code. The gang related colors are stupid for the kids not to wear, they want to go to school the way they want to.
ReplyDeleteKyle Hinkle
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ReplyDeletein my opinion... yea... the school needs to prevent gang related clothes but even kids that have nothing to do with gangs wear clothes that they dont even mean to be gang related. and kids need to express things and how are they spose to express what theyre feeling wearing a small varity of clothing? its kind of like telling a kid they cant dye there hair by community law.. or what ever it is.. they have rites. and alot of the time parents go and save checks to go buy their kids clothing and buy them alot of clothing and dont have barely any money for a while because of it. so the school should have really told the parents what was going on before the school year was close to starting. because it wasnt fair to this girl to have nothing to wear to school because the school was too lazy to tell the parents about it.
ReplyDeleteand sorry mr. fermoyle but it keeps putting my old email name instead of my display name for some reason.
-Dorothy Restuchi.2nd hour
oh yea... and to AaronK...
ReplyDeleteif everyone just switched schools then that wouldnt really solve anything cuz no matter where you go your going to have a dress code. and what is homeschooling gunna do? take you away from all of your friends! so all they can do is gang up and start that lawsuit against the school for not giving anyone enough warning! and talk to the school board about it. i think the schools are taking their dress codes a little too seriously. if your going to make a dress code then it should be to make sure your body isnt showing too much and theres no alchahol or drug related stuff and nothing distracting other kids from their work. other than that. even this new "no flip flops during winter" thing is really stupid cuz thats all alot of girls wear!
This argument was by:
-Dorothy Restuchi of 2nd hour
I think that dress code is dumb. If they are trying to stop gangs well it isn't going to work. Kids can still do their gang stuff after school. During school they don't wear gang colors to do gang related activities. They just wear it to represent their gang. All gang activities would be away from school. If they wanted to get rid of gangs why not get the community involved? With the notice i believe that was unfair. They should have notified the parents like 2 months earlier before people started to go school shopping. The kids sure would be upset with dress code. I mean who wouldn't? Only being allowed to wear black, white, and tan t-shirts would cause a big outrage with the school.
ReplyDeletei agree with gisa. this new dress code gets rid of alot of pressure on the students to try to be someone there not..But I also think that they should have gave notice to the parents sooner. I also think that they should be more leanient this year on the kids because its their fault they didnt notify the parents soon enough!
ReplyDeleteI understand that the school wanted to make changeds to the dress code but I think that they could of done it differently. I think that the school should have done their best of notifying ever parent to make there that they knew. Also to make sure that they knew about it, they should of had to sign a paper of something saying that they new about the new dress code and they would do there best not to send their child to school in something that didnt fallow the dress code. I also think that they should give the students and parents more slack and not be such as big of a deal if it happened once, but if it kept happening over and over then be some consequenses of notifying the parent.
ReplyDeleteI think it's unfair for Carol Moran, her daughter and all the other parents and students. Carol already bought her daughter new school clothes and the dress code is going to make her buy some more because they were the wrong color?? She doesn't have enough money to go out and buy a whole new set of clothes. The students go to school to learn and get an education, not have a fashion show giving negative remarks for what the students are wearing! Plus, the kids are individuals. The shouldn't have to go around looking like everyone else. Now that could cause some gang violence.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion so far schools have more problems with dress codes than advantages. Maybe it should be a reason for them to think, is it really good idea. I agree with Aney, students still can be in some gangs after school and dress code isn't any solution for that. Teachers should tell children what is expected for them to wear, for example no short skirts. We have this system in Warroad and I think that is enough. If somebody doesn't respect these rules this person should be punished.
ReplyDeleteDorothy, if everybody became homeschooled or changed schools, the school would catch on and maybe change the dress code! If I just spent a lot of money on clothes that were not returnable and I could not wear them to school, I wouldn't just buy new clothes so they would fit the dress code policy. I would try to find a school that I could actually wear the clothes that I have bought, instead of wasting a whole bunch of more money on clothes. And yes, I think it's ok to have a dress code to alcohol, drugs, etc. but I think its very dumb to have a dress code policy against certain colors, because just because the students in gangs couldn't wear certain colors to school, doesn't mean they're just gonna drop out of their gang outside of school.
ReplyDeleteArgument to: Dorothy R.
-Aaron Knudson
Aaron, if all of the kids switched to another school then who would the dress code be changing for... and you would have to find a school close by your home or youd have to move. i would know how hard it is going to a school further away and its not easy. and some people arnt lucky enough to have schools closer by. and think about transportation. warroads lucky to have roseau cooperating for transpertation of roseau kids like me. and yea... i agree that kids are just gunna do there gang stuff out of school... im just saying that getting homeschooled or switching schools isnt really going to help everyone else so work with the school about it...talk it over with the school faculty. insteed of causing an even bigger series of problems.... and kids can still wear there clothes outside of school or have a garage sale or something to get some of the money back.
ReplyDeleteArgument to: Aaron K.
-Dorothy Restuchi
Dorothy, I was saying if there was a school close by and the kids either a) were offended they couldn't support their gang at school, b) spend lots of money on clothes they couldn't even wear or c) really disliked the dress code, then they could transfer to a new school, that is if there is actually a different school nearby. Because I'm guessing that this dress code was only assigned by one school, and that not all of the schools in that general area have that same dress code. But if there wasn't a school anywhere near by that they could transfer to, and they really weren't happy with the dress code, then their last choice would be to either go homeschooled, or to just absolutely hate the dress code and continue attending the same school.
ReplyDeleteArgument to: Dorothy R.
-Aaron Knudson
i think it is unfair because people should be able to wear what they want to express their feelings. i mean like at school on spirit week what are they going to wear the same clothes over and over which they already have to do. the schools should learn to brighten up the day with a little color or something and i mean look at the teachers at our school they wear something different to school every day to make a happier life in our school. so thats why if i went to a school and it had a dress code i would trasfer to a different school.
ReplyDeleteA school dress code is not what the teenagers need in order to go to school. Like what msvjb said, spirit week, we could never be able to wear the jerseys and the pirate ninja costumes ever! I gotta say if it comes down to teens and kids wearing just one solid color uniform it would not display much of our school colors. So the schools should lighten up a little on the dress codes.
ReplyDeleteI think that it's really dumb that she had to go home and change.Her parents didn't know that the dress code didn't let her wear the clothes that her parents bought her. It's so unfair that her parents can't afford to buy her new clothes, they already spent all the money they can for her.I don't really think dressing up and stuff is that much of a problem....
ReplyDeleteI think that if the school wanted the childern to have a certain dress code they should have made that more clear in advance. You can't just expect a family to buy new clothes to fit the code. I get some of the reasons why a school might choose the dress code thing. They don't want kids to be judged because of what they wear or something similiar, but it's something they need to announce alot sooner than the day the student gets to school.
ReplyDeleteI think that there are no positive points to the dress code. If some one is in a gang then wheather they can or cant wear their gang colors to school is not going to stop them from being in a gang. I also feel that it was went about in a very wrong way because its pretty pathetic when that mom goes out and buys the daughter all these new cloths with the little bit of money that she does have and then its all a waste because the school didnt let them know soon enoughg. I know that my mom would be really upset if that happened to her!
ReplyDelete- Megan Knott
The schools should let people know about the changes to the dress code way in advance so they know what kind of clothes they'll allow. Its kinda ridiculous that the school didn't do that because there are poor families around there and they cant afford to spend all that money on more clothes when they spent all the could on the other ones that don't follow the dress code. Even though they can stop having gang colors the schools can never stop the gangs themselves.
ReplyDeletei think people should be able to wear whatever they want to school and as long as it doesnt have explicit launge or nude pictures. us kids go to school to learn, not to worry about what kids wear.
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