School Board clarifies student dress and grooming language

During the March 19 Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District (MSBSD) school board meeting, members voted unanimously to adopt Board Policy 5132, Dress and Grooming, specifically adding language to be consistent with current BP 5144.01 Student Rights and Responsibilities.

The adoption follows changes to the student dress code policy that were first introduced at the May 22, 2024 school board meeting. Changes to student dress code policy including would prohibit attire bearing expression or insignia which is obscene, libelous, or advocates racial, religious, or other prejudice; prohibit clothing that is overly revealing.

“This is policy cleanup. All the new language in this policy exists and was created and approved last year at the board level,” remarked MSBSD Superintendent Dr. Randy Trani during the meeting. “We wanted to make sure that the language was reflected in the dress and grooming (policy), just so there was no confusion.”

Under the current policy, clothing that is overly revealing is not allowed. This includes shirts and dresses that are low cut, sleeveless shirts that do not cover undergarments, or that are not long enough to cover the waistband. The midriff/stomach cannot be visible.

Pants, shorts, skirts, and dresses must cover the legs to mid-thigh and while students can have holes in their jeans or pants, they must be below mid-thigh. All undergarments must remain covered. No clothing may be see-through or transparent.

Additionally, for safety reasons, nothing can obstruct or cover the head or face that would block identification during the instructional day. This includes sunglasses, hats, beanies, and hoods.

Reasonable accommodation for a student’s religious beliefs will be made unless the accommodation creates an undue hardship.

Last year, Dr. Trani told the board that changes and updates to the students’ rights and responsibilities, particularly around student dress, has been discussed for years, starting with a representative sampling of teachers and administrators at the start of the school year.

“We just tried to get a sense of what those people thought…and the ranges of opinions went from ‘everything is great how it is’ to ‘that needs to be dramatically changed.’”

He told the board at the time that roughly 1/3 of principals, assistant principals and other administrators surveyed thought there needed to be change, saying that what administrator really wanted was more clarity.

Current board policy states that students are expected to give proper attention to personal cleanliness and to wear clothes that are suitable for the school activities, including industry requirements at the work site, in which they participate. It also states that students have the right to make individual choices from a wide range of clothing and grooming styles, though they cannot present a health, safety hazard, or a distraction which would interfere with the educational process.

For additional information regarding Student Dress and Grooming, (BP 5132), please click here:

www.matsuk12.diligent.community/document/e6a76f70-8de2-48c0-af61-189897f41803/