BUSD elementary schools adopt standardized dress code

BARSTOW • Students heading into the Barstow Unified School District’s elementary schools next year will now be required to follow a uniform dress code, eliminating the individual policies formerly developed by each school.

School officials believe this will cause less confusion for students who switch schools. There is a high transfer rate within the district, and students would often unintentionally violate the dress code at the new school, officials said.

Over the summer, principals from the different elementary schools met to discuss what aspects of dress code they felt would apply.

“We were trying to get a consistent policy in place, so we all sat down and hammered out some changes we felt were needed,” said Crestline Elementary School Principal Dave Finch.

The new dress code clearly lines out what type of clothing and accessories are not permitted and how students should groom themselves when coming to school.

“It’s really a compilation of what they thought were the best (policies),” said district Superintendent Susan Levine.  

Under the uniform policy, which goes into affect for the coming school year, students must remain “neat and clean,” which places restrictions on baggy clothing, excessive body piercings and hair and makeup styling.

The new policy makes extra effort to ban students from wearing gang-related clothing items. Pants must not be more than two inches larger than the students waist, and no clothing, accessories or grooming can reflect gang affiliation. Along those lines, the dress code also bans wallet chains or belt buckles that could be used as a weapon.

Clothing that exposes too much skin, including halter tops, midriff shirts and skirts higher than mid-thigh are not allowed.

Perfume and acrylic nails are not permitted, and makeup is only allowed in special cases, with the permission of school officials.

Many of these policies had already been in place at some of the individual schools, but now apply to all schools.

A complete list of school dress code policies will be available in the parent handbook, which is given out at the beginning of the school year.  

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School dress code
• No baggy or gang-affiliated clothing
• No logos that promote violence or drugs are allowed
• No perfume, cologne or make-up unless authorized by school officials
• No false fingernails are permitted
• Tattoos must be covered
• Clothing that exposes midriffs or plunging necklines are not permitted