The Alameda Sun reports about a change in leadership at Wood Middle School, some highlights:
…This year at Wood Middle School, fashion isn’t being directed so much by pop culture or by a seventh grader’s reasoning as it is by first-year principal, Angela Erlich.
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The purpose of the latter was to revise the vaguely written current dress code, Erlich said.
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Another reason for changing the dress code is because girls are wearing revealing clothing to school, Erlich said. She thinks low- cut tops and holes in pants are a distraction and not what middle school students should be wearing.
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Erlich would prefer the students “dress for success.” That means sagging pants, short skirts and consistently wearing all black, blue or red clothing — something the staff at Wood and AUSD say is gang-related clothing — is off limits.
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“That’s the way we dress,” [Student Daniel] Brantley, 12, said of sagging pants. “That’s expressing ourselves.” But he did concede the girls’ short skirts were “kinda inappropriate.”
Thank goodness for Principal Erlich. Now I don’t know if other schools have a dress code policy or if there is a district wide policy, if there isn’t, there should be. In the days of low cut pants and belly button rings, girls these days are bomabarded with images of what media tells them they should look like or what they should wear. In Ariel Levy’s book, Female Chauvinist Pigs, she talks about the rise of a “raunch culture” in our society that brings back the old images of female objectification in the brand new suit of “female empowerment.” Now, I’m no prude…okay, maybe I am, but I had my mini skirt wearing period just like practically ever other woman on the planet. But I don’t think it is appropriate for young pre-teen women to wear short short skirts or jeans that show off their “butt cleavage.” What are we telling our girls if we don’t tell them it’s not okay to wear shirts with “porn star” written on it or a graphic of a Playboy Bunny?
I know that the days are long gone of turtlenecks and properly fitting jeans, but we don’t need to go to the extreme of halter tops and hot pants. So, thank you Principal Erlich, for helping our kids stay kids for just a little bit longer by setting clothing boundaries in our institutions of learning.
And don’t try checking out Ariel Levy’s book at the main library, I still have it checked out.
I applaud this move. Perhaps it will prevent incidents like these later in their lives.
http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/wireStory?id=2688223
Personally, I’d like to see schools bring back uniforms. I believe this would take the stress of what you wear defining who you are away and relieve a lot of peer pressure. As an added bonus the children could unite in their distaste of the uniforms.
Comment by Ben Kruger — November 30, 2006 @ 10:38 am
Can’t help but contrast the Wood Principal’s decisive and appropriate action in this situation versus the response from Lincoln’s Principal in the curse-word lesson from last month which was anything but decisive and appropriate….
Comment by Neal_J — November 30, 2006 @ 5:03 pm
The reason we moved our son to Chipman is because all that Principal has to talk to the newspapers about is the “Teacher of the Year” who although on special assignment this year is actually a Chipman teacher. Only bragging a bit…
Congrats to Ms.Elkin, who is one of the greatest math teachers anywhere!!!
Sorry, that wasn’t exactly the topic. I think that Junior High is one of the scariest things that can happen to a family. These kids are changing and although we can tell them all the reasons why it is scary…then we send them off from the little cocoon of elementary to the big bad jungle of Jr. High. Everything is out of sorts…I just survived my first of three Jr. High experiences. Let me tell you it gets easier, the kids in High School seem nicer and some don’t dress as slutty and pimpish as the Jr. High kids…maybe they have learned something.
By the way, I clicked on the link in posting #1 and all I can say is I think the stitching in the straps must of been reinforced.
Comment by Barbara M — November 30, 2006 @ 6:51 pm
For those of you who are interested here are the District documents on student dress code:
http://mikemcmahon.info/DressCodeBP.rtf Board Policy
http://mikemcmahon.info/DressCodeBP.rtf Administrative Regulation
Comment by Mike McMahon — November 30, 2006 @ 10:12 pm
I can’t see how a little dress code regulation in the area of medosty would hurt, but I came of age right when we were rebelling for the right to wear blue jeans and sandles, and in junior high my principle called my father about the length of my hair. My father didn’t like my hair either, but he told the principle where to get lost.
I don’t know Lincoln well. As a Parent who looked in to the defunt Bravo program at Chipman I know it somewhat. We have a son who graduated from Wood under the previous principle and the auspices of an also defunct system of academies, his was the arts academy.
Re: # 2,Judy Goodwin, the current principle at Lincoln was the principle for our younger child at Paden. I don’t know anything about the “cursing class” at Lincoln, but Judy is one of the very best adminstrators and best people I’ve ever met.
Comment by Mark — December 1, 2006 @ 5:22 pm
As one of the founing teachers of BRAVO at Chipman, a current EHS and Chipman literacy coach and a 17 year veteran of middle school, I hate to say it but there are many kids at all three middle schools who wear inappropriate clothing.
I do not want to see the bottom, belly, or other areas of a students body exposed at school. The district does have a dress code – it is how the site chooses to enforce the code. Years back, I worked for a principal at Chipman who was very, very strict about dress – shocking, the kids learned very quickly that she would either give them something they did not like to cover themselves up or, they needed to follow the stricly enforced dress code.
Judy Goodwin is a great lady – my child goes to the school where she used to work. The principal at Wood has not been around long enough to know how she will be as an instructional leader (that is really what a principal should be). Laurie McLachlan Fry is a tremendous instructional leader – having taught in a room next to her for years, there are hundreds of young adults out there who will sing her praises with me.
What always gets me in this community is that very few people take the time to go visit Chipman – it is a great school! Problems? Yep. All middle schools have them. Low test scores? Yep. However,if we break down the scores by demographics, Chipman is outscoring the State and District in many ways.
It is the teachers in the classroom there that make the school. Great parents and a so-so teacher is still a so-so year. Laurie and her staff are amazing! (I say this as I am not a classroom teacher there).
Too bad the paper doesn’t do an article on that.
Comment by skahn — December 1, 2006 @ 10:41 pm
Thanks Skahn, I couldn’t have said it better myself.
My family has had the pleasure of being very involved in the schools (my husband more than myself). I have met wonderful teachers from every school in this district. When all is said and done it really seems to me that the principal sets the tone. A classroom can individually be great but the atmosphere of the school is set by the principal. This is where Chipman won my family over. Laurie Fry has a magical gift for what she does..it is not to say that others aren’t good but I don’t even know if she could put into words what the difference is. We were very lucky to live by a great little elementary and cute park in a beautiful neighborhood.
Needless to say Junior High was not in our pretty little picture. Any parent walks through, eyes wide open like a roller coaster ride. Topping this whole thing off the kids are at such fragile point in their lives.
Our son went to Wood for 2 years. We had some great teachers (Ms Ely is the best) and a few bad ones. It didn’t seem like as bad as it could be but it didn’t seem like the best. By chance we went to an open house at Chipman. WOW!!! You can even feel the energy of the teachers…I think they realize that the admin. is really there to help them sucseed. My son had the most amazing experience. He made so many wonderful friends and broke down so many stereo types. I can’t type them all here but seriously, not only did my son learn so much academically and socially but so did I.
Comment by Barbara M — December 2, 2006 @ 6:40 am
Send your kid to a Catholic school and you’ll have nothing to worry about. Uniforms all the way for any kid in elementary school.
Comment by Simon — December 6, 2006 @ 8:57 pm