Granite City school board discussion of uniforms violated Open Meetings Act (Belleville: attorney, high school)

[metalhedz]

GRANITE CITY -- The Granite City school board has released a recording of the closed session in which members illegally discussed a pending school uniform policy, an expert said.
The board voted unanimously to go into executive session May 12 to discuss a controversial proposal to allow school uniforms. While the public was allowed to address the board on the issue, the board members held their discussion behind closed doors.
The Open Meetings Act does allow certain subjects to be discussed out of the public's hearing, such as student discipline, pending litigation and personnel. However, school uniform policies do not qualify as an exception under the law, according to Don Craven, an attorney with the Illinois Press Association.

At the request of the Belleville News-Democrat, the board released an audio recording of the portions of the closed session that concerned the uniform policy, which the board approved at the following meeting without discussion in open session.
In fact, a board member is heard on the recording saying that any member who had a problem with any aspect of the policy should have it addressed in private. It is not apparent which member is speaking.
"If there's anything anyone has, we have to have it addressed and solved by the next meeting," the board member says. "We can't have this discussion in open session. When it comes up on the agenda the next meeting, we'll pass it in open session."
The portion of the recording released is about 45 minutes long. The portion of the board's discussion that was not released involves possible litigation, according to board attorney Tom Schooley, which the Open Meetings Act exempts.
Most of the board's discussion centered on specific aspects of the proposed uniform policy -- whether to require shirts to be tucked in, whether shorts should be belted at the elementary level, etc. -- rather than whether or not to enact the policy in the first place. Again, it is not apparent which members are speaking.
"I would compare it to the pair of shorts you'd wear to play a nice round of golf, you know, similar to a pair of Dockers, not the old-fashioned basketball stuff," one board member said. "We're not even thinking about the big basketball shorts because that would be totally against what we're trying to do."
Extensive discussion took place on the issue of hoodies, and how difficult it would be for teachers and administrators to get kids to keep hoods off their faces.
"I'd like the teachers to be able to get back to teaching and the administrators to be able to administrate," one member said.
One member did say he didn't think cargo pants were a security issue, and another argued they did not look as "fit and professional."
"But these are kids, not adults," the member argued.
Later in the meeting, one of the members proposed waiting to vote on the policy until the following meeting because he was afraid there would be protests at graduation and during final exams.
The uniform policy was unanimously approved at the May 27 meeting without public discussion and will take effect this fall.

Contact reporter Elizabeth Donald at edonald@bnd.com.

[doll lady]

I certainly don't know a thing about this but I would like to comment about my own school experience many many years ago. My community school had a very strict dress code, and it didn't affect my learning skills. I received a very comprehensive education and I was scared to death of our school superintendent as well as my dad even though I never got a spanking from either, nor did I ever do anything to happenchance a spanking. And..... I might add that courtesy and being well mannered and being quiet in class were the school requirements and all of us had RESPECT at that time.

The girls at that time wore dresses or skirts and no pants/shorts, capris, pedal pushers or skorts were allowed. The skirt length had to touch our knees and if asked to kneel on the gym floor, the skirt of the garment had to be at floor level. Now this didn't stop us from rolling our skirts up at the waist and pinning them into a shorter version of the skirt....and when a hall monitor or teacher asked us to go to the office to check the length, the pins were released during our hall walk to the office and presto, magic, the skirt length met the requirements. But this was the only rule we chanced to violate...rolling of the skirt waists became a game to us.

The boy's were required to wear dress pants and a nice shirt with a collar. No jeans or shorts of any kind were allowed, except gym shorts during gym class. The boy's hair could not touch the collar of their shirt and no mohawks or shaving of the head was allowed, although a burr hair cut was allowed.

This dress code prepared our school for any surprise visits by any dignitary, president, governor (which we used to get visits from our governor riding in his helicopter and landing in the school yard). What any visitor saw was a group of well dressed, very polite and quiet children, h.ell bent on getting a good education. There were almost no drop-outs.

My point is, what happened to dress codes? Why don't schools have more dress codes? Why are there so many drop-outs? Why do I see pants' waistlines hanging the the middle of boys' hind-ends. Why do I read about violence and killings in schools? Why are metal detectors needed in schools and why are drug finding dogs needed in schools. Maybe because RESPECT has been lost, by both students and parents. The word SUCCESS in elementary, middle and high school education should be something to strive for by every student. But is it?

I do not see uniforms as a bad thing. I don't quite understand your position on uniforms but it really doesn't matter as I won't argue with anyone about it, because I see it as something a parent would want because in order to survive in this ever changing world, education will most likely become the most important possession a person can have.

Rant Over..... and stepping down from my soapbox.

[linicx]

I don't see the problem. The public was aware and did address their concerns prior to when the board adjourned. What the uniform law does is put an an extra expense on parents.

There are other ways to enforce a dress code. One method is no T-shirts exposed, all shirts tucked in pants, no bare midriff, skirts knee length or below, no underwear exposed, no muscle shirts, etc. And then you have the ACLU whining that dress code violates a student's right to free speech. And this leads to school uniform policy.

Personally I think schools should educate. Sports wear like camp pants with its 13 pockets, and cell phones should stay out of school. It is impossible to teach or learn with constant distractions - which is probably wny Illinois schools are ranked number 50 out of 51 nationally. All you really need is a "no-excuse" dress code policy that can be enforced.

[cubssoxfan]

Simple solution: go back to school uniforms. Eliminate the gray area and the peer pressure of not wearing something "cool".