FILE:  JCDB

 

STUDENT DRESS CODE

 

 

The dress code of the Richland Parish School Board will be to monitor a viable ordered learning environment and to prepare our students to cope with the business standards of the community.

 

It is a known fact that a person's appearance affects his/her atti­tude and behavior.  Each student is entitled to an educational climate in which teaching and learning can take place, free of disruption of any kind, including distracting forms of dress and/or grooming.  Therefore, the School Board feels a responsibility concerning the appearance of students in the classroom, participating in school activities, and on school trips.  Traditionally, in appearance and in behavior, Richland Parish students have represented their schools with pride.  To ensure continuance of such a tradition, the following requirements have been established by the School Board.

 

In questions regarding student dress and grooming, the principal or his/her designee of each school shall make the final decision as to what is considered proper or improper dress according to the guidelines provided.  It shall be the policy of the Richland Parish School Board that schools shall adhere to a nondiscriminatory student dress and grooming provision of educational opportunities for children and no person shall be excluded from participation in or denied the benefits of any education service, program or activity on the basis of race, color, disability, religion, creed, national origin, age, or sex.

 

NOTIFICATION

 

The School Board shall notify the parent or guardian of each student of the dress code specifications and their effective date.  The dress code shall be distributed in written form or posted on the school’s website annually.

 

If the School Board adopts a uniform policy or modifies the existing uniform policy, it shall notify, in writing the parent or guardian of each student of the policy adoption or uniform policy modification at least sixty (60) days prior to the effective date of the new or revised policy.  Each school shall display any uniform selected for a reasonable period prior to the proposed effective date for wearing of the uniform.

 

However, nothing shall prohibit the School Board from requiring a new or revised dress code or uniform policy without the required notice in the event of an emergency.  For the purposes of this policy, emergency shall mean an actual or imminent threat to health or safety which may result in loss of life, injury, or property damage.

 

BODY ARMOR

 

It shall be unlawful and against School Board policy for any student or non-student to wear or possess on his/her person, at any time, body armor on any School Board property, school campus, at a school-sponsored function, on a school bus or other school transportation, or in a firearm-free zone, with limited exceptions as enumerated in La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §14:95.9, which includes permitting a student to wear, carry, or possess a backpack on school property or a school bus that has bullet-resistant metal or other material intended to provide protection from weapons or bodily injury.

 

School-sponsored functions shall include, but not be limited to, athletic competitions, dances, parties, or any extracurricular activities.  A firearm-free zone means any area inclusive of any school campus and within 1,000 feet of any such school campus, and within a school bus, wherein the possession of firearms is prohibited, except as specifically set forth in La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §§14:95.2(C) and 14:95.6(B).

 

Body armor shall mean bullet-resistant metal or other material intended to provide protection from weapons or bodily injury.

 

The School Board shall notify all students of the provisions of this policy

 

DRESS CODE VIOLATIONS

 

Students who violate the dress code shall be disciplined in accordance with the Student Code of Conduct.

 

A student enrolled in grades prekindergarten through five shall not be suspended or expelled from school or suspended from riding on any school bus for a uniform violation that is not tied to willful disregard of school policies.

 

Revised:  August, 1999 Revised:  July 10, 2007
Revised:  July 11, 2000 Revised:  July 15, 2008
Revised:  August, 1999 Revised:  April 7, 2009
Revised:  July 11, 2000  Revised:  July 9, 2013
Revised:  July 10, 2001 Revised:  July 14, 2015
Revised:  July 13, 2004 Revised:  October 13, 2015
Revised:  July 13, 2006 Revised:  July 10, 2018

 

 

Ref:    La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §§14:95.2, 14:95.6, 14:95.9, 17:81, 17:416.7

Scott v. Board of Education, 304 N.Y.S.S. 2d 601 (1969)

Karr v. Schmidt; 460 F. 2d 609 (5th Cir. 1972)

Board minutes, 5-12-92, 7-7-98, 7-6-99, 7-11-00, 7-10-01, 7-13-04, 7-13-06, 7-10-07, 7-15-08, 4-7-09, 7-9-13, 7-14-15, 10-13-15, 7-10-18

 

Richland Parish School Board