We the undersigned, parents in the Licking Heights community, request fair rules regarding dress code be enacted now. Current policy is discriminatory on the basis of gender, race, and socioeconomic status. The concerns addressed here will specifically address issues related to gender.
The majority of the rules are specific to issues that girls encounter whereas boys don't. Guidelines such as "a fingertip rule" are dated and not relevant to the fit or coverage of an item of clothing.
This is only one rule within the dress code that serves no purpose in fostering an environment to further education. There are many more.
When a young girl is asked to cover her body, the concept of shame is introduced. When a young girl is told her shorts are distracting she is being told it's her responsibility to cover up and not provide the distraction. This is nothing short of a version of victim blaming. Research reported on by the National Education Association discusses statistics and available information on the topics.
Girls, and students impacted by other parts of the dress code, shouldn't be worried about any of these issues and should be focused on learning. The dress code at Licking Heights and how it is enforced detracts from a positive learning environment, targets specific groups of students, and sends disasterous messages to the youth in our community.
