New dress code for middle schools bans all logos on clothing

Maricopa middle school students can say goodbye to Nike, Adidas, Hurley or any other logo displayed on their clothing.

The Maricopa Unified School District’s Governing Board approved a new dress code for its middle schools at Monday’s special board meeting.

The new code, which will go into effect at the start of the 2009-10 school year, states that students can not wear any clothing with logos other than school spirit T-shirts. Other rules include pants and shirts cannot be the same color, shirts may not extend past a student’s fingertips when the hand is extended at the side and bottom garments must extend a minimum of 2 inches past the extended fingertips, must be worn at the waist line and not be more than one size larger than the properly fitted size.

“This new code is well-written, specific and enforceable,” said board member Lori Glenn.

Prior to the adoption of the dress code, middle school students were able to wear shirts with graphics that were no larger than 2 inches.

“It was difficult in the past because you had to get out a ruler and say ‘Is this 2 inches or is it more?’ ” board member Tracy Davis said.

However, board member Carrie Vargas does see potential problems with the change. “The economy is not good and 95 percent of what people can buy has a logo on it,” she said. “I am concerned about eliminating T-shirts with graphics.”

Desert Wind Middle School principal Isaac Perez said it was difficult coming up with a code all parents were happy with, but he believed what they presented the board was a sound compromise. “At first we wanted to do only button-up or collared shirts, but we opted to allow T-shirts also,” he said.

Another school in the district may soon be looking at adopting a comparable code.

“We eventually want to have a dress code similar to this at the high school level,” district Superintendent John Flores said.

Currently at the high school level, the dress code is very ambiguous, Flores said. “It basically states that a student’s dress can not be a disruption to the classroom,” he said.

Maricopa High School principal June Celaya said she is looking at the possibility of crafting a survey for parents about the implementation of a new dress code. Having a dress code in high school similar to the one at the middle schools would make the transition smoother, but it is going to be a battle to get something like this in place, she said.

In addition to approving the new dress code, the board also gave the OK for a 10-session sex education program aimed at teaching Desert Wind eighth-graders to say no to sex.

An orientation for the new program will be held 6 p.m. Thursday at the Desert Wind Media Center, in which parents will be able to ask questions. All students who participate in the program must have parental approval.

Photo by Michael K. Rich