In a letter sent to local media outlets this week, Indian River School Board Member and School Uniform Committee Chairman Donald Hattier said students will not be wearing uniforms to begin the 2007-2008 school year. A dress code will not be implemented until the start of the 2008-09 school year at the earliest, according to the letter.
With committee members still wrapped in discussion and in need of further input, the decision whether to implement a policy mandating that students adhere to a uniformed dress code will be delayed until at least later this year, Hattier wrote in the 635-word letter addressed to parents of district students that culminated with, “We appreciate your patience.”
District officials, parents and otherwise concerned area residents began discussions on a uniform policy in the fall of 2006 and received overwhelming support from district parents early this year to continue those discussions.
More than half of the 8,100 surveys sent out in January were returned with 75 percent supporting further investigation into whether or not the district should implement a school uniform policy, though no figure for those who supported implementation — as opposed to continued discussion — has been cited.
Hattier wrote that the committee will seek further input from parents and educators later this year and send a follow-up survey to again gauge support for a potential policy. In the letter, he continued, writing that “elements (of a dress code) could include shirts, tops, slacks, shorts, polo shirts, jackets and accessories.”
Preliminary dress code proposals — including one presented at February’s school board meeting — almost mirrored those already implemented in the Woodbridge School District and Indian River’s Southern Delaware School of the Arts.
A dress code could include mandated collared — often referred to by the designer-name Polo — shirts, perhaps complemented by a sweater, with khaki slacks or a skirt.
At February’s meeting, and in this week’s letter, Hattier noted downsides of a potential policy, including the initial monetary investment of purchasing the uniform. Hattier wrote, however, that “financial provisions” must be afforded to those who cannot afford to purchase the uniform, according to state law.
Hattier has said in the past that a dress code could improve self-esteem, save parents time in the morning and money on clothes, and improve focus in discipline in Indian River schools.
Parents and students alike have been split on the issue, with some from each group supporting the idea and some denouncing it. Hattier said earlier that one district parent had vulgarly announced his displeasure about the idea to the board member over the phone before abruptly hanging up, prompting Hattier to note the existence of a “vocal minority.”
Even some families are split on the contentious issue.
“It’s not fair,” Georgetown Elementary student Antonio Lopez said of a potential dress code in Indian River schools. “In the beginning of the year, they say to be unique. Now they’re saying to wear the same stuff.”
“They’re good for the kids,” added Andrea Lopez, Antonio’s mom, saying that uniforms would alleviate the social pressures that come with clothes and save her money. “We can buy good clothes only for the weekends.”
And classmates are split, too.
“I feel it doesn’t let me express myself. When I go to school, I want to express myself through clothes,” said Nick Hensler, an Indian River High School freshman. “If I have to wear a uniform, it makes me feel as if I’m the same as everyone else.”
Standing with Hensler outside Indian River on a relatively warm day in December just after uniform discussions had begun, 14-year-old Indian River freshman Zoe Jurusik quazi-had a different take.
“I’d be for it in a sense that it would save parents money,” she said. “But I don’t think kids would be for it because they like to wear what they want to wear.”