Dallas School District Revises Dress Code for New Year Causing Mixed Support

Photo by Yan Krukov on Pexels

A school district on the outskirts of Dallas has made some new clothing changes for the upcoming school year. Forney Independent School District announced students can no longer wear hoodies, skirts, shorts, and other attire beginning for the 2022-23 school year.

Forney ISD Superintendent Justin Terry appears halfway through the video and says:

“Things like creativity and collaboration are so important, but what’s also important are some of the foundational baseline employability skills.”

A Texas school district banned hoodies, short dresses, and 'unnatural hair coloring' in the dress code meant to train students for the 'future workforce'

Forney Independent School District is banning students from wearing certain clothing, including hoodies.

The new dress code aims to train students for the "future workforce," the school district said.

Many students and parents, however, have criticized the school for the dress code.

https://www.google.com/.../texas-school-district-facing...

Incoming freshman Emma Devore told NBC 5 in Dallas:
"They think it's an outrage. They hate it. They go on and on about how we should be able to express ourselves with what we wear...the hoodies are a big deal."

Wendy Devore, Emma's mother told NBC 5:
"I think taking the hoodies away is a little too much. I do like that they do have a dress code."

A Texas school district mandated a strict new student dress code for the 2022-2023 school year — restricting students from wearing clothing they view as unprofessional.

The Forney Independent School District, in a video posted June 22, called its new dress code "Back for the Future."

The attire guidelines aimed to prepare students for the future workforce, according to a video the school district posted.

Superintendent Justin Terry said:

"There are so many important future workforce skills that we want to impart in our kids as they head off to have a successful future. Things like creativity and collaboration are so important, but what's also important are some of the foundational baseline employability skills."

The guidelines are restrictive, making certain clothes and hairstyles unacceptable. Many commonly worn clothes are inappropriate articles of clothing at Forney, per the announcement.

The full list of unacceptable clothing attire and wear includes:

• Shirts with visible stripes, checks, lettering, wording, or other designs
• Sleeveless shirts
• Thermal type shirts
• T-shirts
• Zippered shirts or blouses
• Hooded sweatshirts or outerwear
• Baggy-style legged slacks
• Holes in clothing
• Cargo or Carpenter-style pants
• Soccer or boxer style shorts, wind shorts/pants, athletic shorts/pants, sweat shorts/pants, spandex
• Dresses
• Overall pants, overall shorts, overall jumpers, and coveralls
• Leather, suede, vinyl, corduroy, and denim materials; brads or studs
• Unnatural hair color

Photo by Sharon McCutcheon

In the video, a student lays her clothes on her bed and says:

“I may be a little young to understand what professionalism means right now, but the skills I’m learning are an essential part of being successful in my future career."

“Every profession has a dress code, whether it’s scrubs, a welding helmet, or a chef’s apron,” she says. “The way I dress plays an important role in professionalism and safety, both in the classroom and on the job site.”

Superintendent Justin Terry said:

“We are so excited to reset this bar with you - with our parents, with our community members, with all of our business partners - as we work together to take our schools, our classrooms back for the future of our kids to have a safe, enjoyable and excitable learning environment in Forney ISD."

A statement released by FISD mentions the dress code “gives the district a positive and distinctive identity and reflects the values of the schools and community. All students are required to wear the appropriate dress each day except for those days designated as non-dress code days at the discretion of the school administrators.”

Students have already started to complain about the new dress code. A petition was started on change.org.

Brooklynn Hollaman said of the new dress code:

“Any sensible person can realize that this is completely wrong.”

FISD officials released a statement regarding the changes saying the dress code “is established to improve student self-esteem, bridge socio-economic differences among students, and promote positive behavior, thereby enhancing school safety and improving the learning environment.”

Do you agree or disagree with the FISD dress code?