Visalia Unified revamps dress code prior to 2022-23 school year

Visalia Unified approved its new dress code policy for the 2022-23 school year after four years of collaboration between students and staff, with a focus on equity.

Some of the changes include verbiage regarding midriff, strapless and backless tops, as well as clothing brands that promote gangs, pornography, vaping and more.

“The goal was to create a policy that was more equitable ... in enforcement,” said Brandon Gridiron, Equity and Student Services administrator. “Prior to the change — there were no enforcement rules. That's where we created inconsistency.”

Students said they felt the dress code disproportionately impacted females – more female students receive dress code infractions, leading to less time in the classroom compared to their male counterparts.

Golden West hosts Monache in a non-league high school football game  on Friday, September 3, 2021.
Golden West hosts Monache in a non-league high school football game on Friday, September 3, 2021.

The dress code policy was also inconsistently enforced between sites, students said.

“Being able to provide the guidance and clarity around enforcement was a challenge,” Gridiron said, further explaining the pandemic exacerbated the issue.

"When there is no enforcement," he continued, "you start to see kids out of dress code and start to question whether there is a dress code or not.”

Visalia Unified launched a pilot dress code policy during the 2021-22 school year. Staff then made changes to the dress code based on feedback received from students, staff and stakeholders.

The board approved the following recommended changes Tuesday:

  1. Tops that reveal midriff are a violation.

  2. Strapless/backless tops are in violation of the dress code (with exceptions for dances).

  3. Students cannot have clothing or personal items on campus, including brands that promote any of the following: images or language depicting violence, vaping, drugs, or alcohol, hate speech, profanity, pornography, and/or language that creates a hostile or intimidating environment based on any protective class.

Visalia Unified staff and administration should have a "calm, respectful conversation" with a student found to be out of dress code rather than "calling them out," Gridiron said.

If a student is found in violation of the dress code, they have three options: change into other clothing they personally own, borrow clothing from the school, or have a parent bring alternative clothing.

Visalia Unified is working with community partners to ensure students have options readily available on campus. The district is accepting donations for its “Christmas in July” clothing drive for children ages 4-18 throughout the month.

Those interested in donating can drop clothes off at the following locations:

  • Visalia Unified School District Offices (5000 W. Cypress Ave.)

  • Visalia Unified Downtown Annex (505 N. Court St.)

  • Four Creeks Elementary School (1844 N. Burke St.)

  • LDS Church (825 W. Tulare Ave., 4000 W. Caldwell Ave., or 650 N. Lovers Lane)

To view a copy of Visalia Unified School District’s updated dress code policy, click here.

"We will continue to monitor the policy throughout the year and ongoing and bring it back if we need to," Gridiron said. "Hopefully we don't need to."

Lauren Jennings covers education and news for the Visalia Times-Delta/Tulare Advance-Register. Follow her on Twitter @lolojennings. Get alerts and keep up on all things Tulare County for as little as $1 a month. Subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Visalia Times-Delta: Visalia Unified revamps student dress code with focus on equity