Dress code targets female students

[TalkingDog]

http://www.myfoxatlanta.com/story/26730570/dress-code-controversy-at-pope-high-school

The dress code regulates necklines, hemlines, no tight jeans, leggings or yoga pants. Many students say it targets female students.

Emma, a junior, says while she agrees with most of the dress code, the problem is it's all about what girls can wear and not what boys should wear.

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Pope High Principal Bob Downs (OP: [e-mail]) tells FOX 5's Denise Dillon the dress code is about more than just keeping easily distracted teenage boys in check. He says it's about dressing for success.

/snip

no words.

[MineralMan]

1. Maybe its Principal Bob who is being distracted

by those high school girls. Certainly the boys there are going to be distracted, no matter what the dress code is. They're girls, after all, and nothing's more distracting to high school boys.

So, maybe it's Principal Bob who doesn't want distractions.

[yeoman6987]

5. His last words were "dress for success". Lol.

[yeoman6987]

2. It's always been this way

Even in the 60's and before girls had to ensure skirts were a certain length and fingernails a certain length. Boys usually were hit on hair length.

Today, they have allowed the rules to be liberal. But they are just tightening it up some. However, if boys are coming to school with tight jeans and pajama pants, that should be called out too.

[SheilaT]

3. The school my sons went to had a dress code

and the kids complained a lot about it.

The clothing options for girls tend to be much wider than the clothing options for boys. Perhaps boys and men are more conformist to begin with. But it's not that hard to have comparable dress codes for both. The trick becomes in enforcing them, which is why it can be easier to have some sort of uniform.

Almost any job any of them will ever have will have a more rigid dress code than the ones schools impose.

[seabeyond]

4. you know. when my boys didnt know better, i dress coded them. seems to be a parents

job. unfortunately, too many do not see it that way. not a tough one to figure out.

[TexasProgresive]

6. My high school had a strict dress code for boys

Let's start at the feet- leather shoes with socks, no sneakers except on the gym floor, Slacks, no jeans or jean cut corduroys, shirts with collars, no logos, no tee shirts, no "surfer" shirts ( like a polo shirt with a banded collar). Hair could not touch the collar (that's why shirts had to have collars, LOL), not touch the ears and I forget the rule on sideburns, but no facial hair.

I personally think there is a case for school uniforms. The kids are going to fuss about it but it makes it a lot easier on the parents. They can express their individuality out of school. There is a big plus in that H.S. age kids are prone to rebellion and rebelling against a dress code is harmless.

[hunter]

7. Does that mean boys can wear yoga pants?

Sex specific dress codes are easy to mock, especially in communities where LGBT kids are accepted.

The big concern in our community is gangs. Any gang related clothing gets immediate attention.

For middle school there is one uniform, same for boys and girls. Black slacks and a white button-up shirt. Other shirts awarded by the school for various accomplishments, are also acceptable. The colors and styles of clothing like jackets, shoes, socks, etc., is also supervised, again, to discourage gang identifications.

The dress code in the high schools does not distinguish between boys and girls either, and most of the rules are related to gang identifications.

Otherwise it's all sexually neutral prohibitions like this:

No bare midriffs, no excessively torn/see through/ragged pants, shorts, skirts or shirts; no clothing containing profanity, obscenity, illegal activity, is vulgar or sexually suggestive, or that promotes the use of drugs, alcohol, or tobacco

As typical teenagers, both boys and girls push against the boundaries, and they are going to be distracting to one another no matter what.

I figure part of growing up is learning how to behave in an appropriate manner even when distractions are present.

Adult males ought to be talking to the boys about distractions. Making it the girls' job not to distract the boys is creepy.