RIPON - Two Ripon High School juniors – a boy and a girl – went before the school board Monday night and questioned the thinking behind the current dress code.
The young man set his baseball cap with its orange logo on the podium asking trustees why he didn’t have the right to wear the hat to school – it should be his choice he suggested.
The girl approached the microphone minutes later standing behind the podium with the short shorts she wore to school earlier in the day questioning why there were not seen as appropriate by the high school staff. She had been sent home because of her dress, she said.
The boy seemed to understand the resulting explanation that gangs had used different national ball teams as their signs, their colors and therefore the related caps couldn’t be allowed on the school campuses.
The young lady, on the other hand, danced around the podium displaying her outfit to the board members who watched stone-faced. She said that in holding her hands to her sides, the bottom of the shorts came to her finger tips – a length she felt to be appropriate.
She claimed that she had applied for a job wearing the same outfit and got the job. If it was OK for an employer, she said she didn’t understand why it would not be OK for her teachers at school.
The board members had no comment and went on to the next agenda item in the meeting.
The young man set his baseball cap with its orange logo on the podium asking trustees why he didn’t have the right to wear the hat to school – it should be his choice he suggested.
The girl approached the microphone minutes later standing behind the podium with the short shorts she wore to school earlier in the day questioning why there were not seen as appropriate by the high school staff. She had been sent home because of her dress, she said.
The boy seemed to understand the resulting explanation that gangs had used different national ball teams as their signs, their colors and therefore the related caps couldn’t be allowed on the school campuses.
The young lady, on the other hand, danced around the podium displaying her outfit to the board members who watched stone-faced. She said that in holding her hands to her sides, the bottom of the shorts came to her finger tips – a length she felt to be appropriate.
She claimed that she had applied for a job wearing the same outfit and got the job. If it was OK for an employer, she said she didn’t understand why it would not be OK for her teachers at school.
The board members had no comment and went on to the next agenda item in the meeting.
