Just Food For Thought
11-13-07, - 09:51 PM
Shawnterya Carter didn't go to school Tuesday.
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The 12-year-old won't go to school today, either. Neither she nor her mother can say when she'll return.
The problem isn't her health. It's her hair.
Pleasant Valley Middle School says Shawnterya's new hair color - actually, just her extensions - is disruptive. So she has been barred from school until she changes her 'do.
She says quietly, "I don't think there's anything wrong with it."
Nor does her mother, Ebony Neasman.
"If I felt it was inappropriate, I wouldn't let her do it," Neasman says.
Over the weekend, Shawnterya got her hair done in micro braids - a popular style, especially among African-American women. It features tight, thin braids weaved into hair extensions, which flare out freely.
Shawnterya's hair reaches shoulder-length. But she also can wear it in a pony-tail.
Yet the school's objection stems not from the hairstyle or length, but the color of the extensions. They're maroon.
Shawnterya is in the seventh grade at Pleasant Valley Middle School, west of Peoria, near Norwood. The school, part of District 62, feeds into Limestone Community High School.
Late in the school day Monday, Principal Sandy Somogyi talked with Shawnterya. According to the girl's mother, the principal told Shawnterya that her hair color was "inappropriate," and she could not return to school unless the maroon was removed from her hair.
Later, Neasman called Somogyi, who repeated her judgment of the hair as inappropriate.
Neasman replied, "How can you deem something inappropriate? That's an opinion."
Somogyi referred to the student handbook's section on hair. "She said it could cause a problem with other students or be a distraction," Neasman says.
But Neasman sees the handbook as vague. It reads in part: "Any type of dress or grooming that is inappropriate or disruptive will not be permitted, and students will be asked to change or given alternative clothing. Refusal to cooperate could result in the student being sent home."
Shawnterya can't hide her extensions under a head covering. All types of hats and scarves are specifically prohibited by the handbook.
The handbook is also clear in restrictions on shirts, coats, footwear, jewelry and other garb. But hair is barely mentioned, in this concluding passage on grooming: "This list is not all-inclusive. Any clothing, accessories, hairstyle or hair color that is deemed by teachers or administration as inappropriate or causing a distraction will not be allowed at school."
Usually, I side with schools in matters of discipline and order. For example, with the recent hullabaloo over bandanas at Pekin Community High School, students flagrantly disobeyed and protested a very clear school policy. That's wrong.
But here, it's hard to see the potential trouble with Shawnterya's hair. If you were to walk past her, you likely wouldn't even notice the maroon extensions. It's not as if highlights are anything outlandish in the world of female hairstyles. Further, blended with her dark hair, maroon doesn't stand out much.
"I can understand (an objection) if her hair was neon green or neon orange," says her mother - who also wears micro braids, but with light-brown highlights.
In the end, her mother told the principal that she didn't feel Shawnterya's hair was inappropriate or disruptive. Further, the hairstyle involves an elaborate process: it took 10 hours to get it just right - and cost $100.
So, the maroon is staying in and Shawnterya is staying home.
"She has done nothing wrong," her mother says.
Principal Somogyi referred my phone call to Superintendent Allen Johnson. He didn't call me back.
That leaves Shawnterya in the lurch. She spent Tuesday wandering Northwoods Mall, where her mother works as a store clerk. They don't know how long she'll stay out of school.
The absences (and, possibly, further discipline), undoubtedly could hurt Shawnterya - an honor roll student. Are her academics worth risking to take a stand against a student policy? So far, her mother says yes.
"I think I'm going to have to get a lawyer," her mother says.
PHIL LUCIANO is a columnist with the Journal Star. He can be reached at pluciano@pjstar.com, 686-3155 or (800) 225-5757, Ext. 3155.
http://www.pjstar.com/stories/103107/PHI_BEPR10SJ.033.php
EnlargeAdd to CartEmail this Photo
The 12-year-old won't go to school today, either. Neither she nor her mother can say when she'll return.
The problem isn't her health. It's her hair.
Pleasant Valley Middle School says Shawnterya's new hair color - actually, just her extensions - is disruptive. So she has been barred from school until she changes her 'do.
She says quietly, "I don't think there's anything wrong with it."
Nor does her mother, Ebony Neasman.
"If I felt it was inappropriate, I wouldn't let her do it," Neasman says.
Over the weekend, Shawnterya got her hair done in micro braids - a popular style, especially among African-American women. It features tight, thin braids weaved into hair extensions, which flare out freely.
Shawnterya's hair reaches shoulder-length. But she also can wear it in a pony-tail.
Yet the school's objection stems not from the hairstyle or length, but the color of the extensions. They're maroon.
Shawnterya is in the seventh grade at Pleasant Valley Middle School, west of Peoria, near Norwood. The school, part of District 62, feeds into Limestone Community High School.
Late in the school day Monday, Principal Sandy Somogyi talked with Shawnterya. According to the girl's mother, the principal told Shawnterya that her hair color was "inappropriate," and she could not return to school unless the maroon was removed from her hair.
Later, Neasman called Somogyi, who repeated her judgment of the hair as inappropriate.
Neasman replied, "How can you deem something inappropriate? That's an opinion."
Somogyi referred to the student handbook's section on hair. "She said it could cause a problem with other students or be a distraction," Neasman says.
But Neasman sees the handbook as vague. It reads in part: "Any type of dress or grooming that is inappropriate or disruptive will not be permitted, and students will be asked to change or given alternative clothing. Refusal to cooperate could result in the student being sent home."
Shawnterya can't hide her extensions under a head covering. All types of hats and scarves are specifically prohibited by the handbook.
The handbook is also clear in restrictions on shirts, coats, footwear, jewelry and other garb. But hair is barely mentioned, in this concluding passage on grooming: "This list is not all-inclusive. Any clothing, accessories, hairstyle or hair color that is deemed by teachers or administration as inappropriate or causing a distraction will not be allowed at school."
Usually, I side with schools in matters of discipline and order. For example, with the recent hullabaloo over bandanas at Pekin Community High School, students flagrantly disobeyed and protested a very clear school policy. That's wrong.
But here, it's hard to see the potential trouble with Shawnterya's hair. If you were to walk past her, you likely wouldn't even notice the maroon extensions. It's not as if highlights are anything outlandish in the world of female hairstyles. Further, blended with her dark hair, maroon doesn't stand out much.
"I can understand (an objection) if her hair was neon green or neon orange," says her mother - who also wears micro braids, but with light-brown highlights.
In the end, her mother told the principal that she didn't feel Shawnterya's hair was inappropriate or disruptive. Further, the hairstyle involves an elaborate process: it took 10 hours to get it just right - and cost $100.
So, the maroon is staying in and Shawnterya is staying home.
"She has done nothing wrong," her mother says.
Principal Somogyi referred my phone call to Superintendent Allen Johnson. He didn't call me back.
That leaves Shawnterya in the lurch. She spent Tuesday wandering Northwoods Mall, where her mother works as a store clerk. They don't know how long she'll stay out of school.
The absences (and, possibly, further discipline), undoubtedly could hurt Shawnterya - an honor roll student. Are her academics worth risking to take a stand against a student policy? So far, her mother says yes.
"I think I'm going to have to get a lawyer," her mother says.
PHIL LUCIANO is a columnist with the Journal Star. He can be reached at pluciano@pjstar.com, 686-3155 or (800) 225-5757, Ext. 3155.
http://www.pjstar.com/stories/103107/PHI_BEPR10SJ.033.php