Trigg seeks ‘standardized dress

The principal of H.L. Trigg Community School made the case Monday for “standardized dress” as a boon to safety, school pride and a sense of family.

Principal Ainslie Jones told the Elizabeth City-Pasquotank Board of Education that what the school has in mind is standardized dress — staff at the school resist the term “uniform” — something like khaki pants and a green shirt that would incorporate school colors. The shirt would be plain, without any kind of logo, she said.

The intent is not to place any additional cost on parents but rather to have the dress code consist of clothes that students can wear at another school after spending a semester or nine weeks at Trigg, Jones explained.

Jones said Trigg would like to be able to implement a policy at the start of the 2013-14 school year.

“It would be lovely to start on that,” Jones said.

The school board took no action on Jones’ request.

Board Chairman Barry Overman advised Jones the school board will have to take a series of steps, including holding a public forum and sending out parent surveys, before it can adopt any kind of policy regarding standardized dress for a school.

“We have several hoops that we have to jump through,” Overman said.

Adopting the precise dress code would be a big step for the board, but members are willing to do it if it will make Trigg safer, Overman said.

Superintendent Linwood Williams agreed that following the process is important.

“I think that’s the cleanest way to do it, and the safest way,” Williams said.

During her presentation Jones said standardized dress would make the school safer by making it easier to see who is supposed to be at the school and who might have wandered onto the campus.

“I think that’s really the biggest concern,” Jones said.

The khaki pants and green shirt also could contribute to a sense of school pride and family-type unity, and possibly reduce the problem of bullying, she said.

“But I think if we had to point to the most important reason I think it would be safety,” Jones said.

Board member Erskine Morgan called Jones’ proposal a “very good, commonsense approach.”

Vice Chairman Glenda Griffin said Jones’ explanation of how the clothes would be functional for students after they leave the school had addressed her main concern.

“I have no problem with it at this point, and thank you for convincing me of that,” Griffin told Jones.

Board member Harvey Beasley said he has talked to officials in other school districts and never heard anything negative about dress codes.

Griffin asked Jones if female students would be allowed to wear khaki skirts.

Jones said skirts would be fine.

When Griffin asked if the policy would need to address the hem length of skirts, Jones replied that the school district already has standards for that.

Overman said the board will listen to staff and parents in making its decision.

Williams told board members during committee meetings last week that Trigg was the only school that expressed any support for uniforms or a specific dress code such as what Jones and her staff have proposed.