Clovis schools will review dress code after calls of sexism. Will students get a say?

Clovis Unified administrators say they are putting together a comprehensive plan to review the district’s dress code this fall after current and former students have spent months voicing their concerns that the rules are sexist and outdated.

Annie Nguyen, a 2021 Clovis High School graduate, has been spearheading the latest movement to get the dress code changed.

Nguyen made a callout earlier this year for students to share their stories about the dress code and received over 200 comments, many from girls who say they felt sexualized by the administration and teachers for having bodies that put them in violation of the dress code.

Nguyen started speaking out at district board meetings in April, and many other students relayed their experiences and asked trustees to make changes.

The cause has gathered more than 2,500 signatures in support.

CUSD dress code review

Every year, the dress code undergoes a review, according to Superintendent Eimear O’Farrell, but “this year, the board charged us with having a very thorough and comprehensive review process in the fall.”

O’Farrell said leadership has been processing the concerns brought up by students. She said there are two aspects they plan to address: how the dress code is enforced and the dress code itself.

She said before school begins in August, any updates will be shared with staff.

“We’ll also be finalizing the process for that very thorough review that will take place in September and October,” she said.

That review will include holding input meetings at each school and having a committee develop recommendations, which will be brought back to the board and other leaders, who will decide the ultimate changes, according to CUSD spokesperson Kelly Avants.

The meetings will be held during the first quarter of school, and notices will be sent out to make students and parents aware.

“Membership on the committee has not been determined yet,” Avants said. “Many stakeholders will have a voice in this review, with consideration given to the fact that all but a very small number of our students are minors under the age of 18 and parents/guardians should be greatly involved in the process.”

Jennifer Rojas, a youth advocacy and leadership program coordinator at Fresno Barrios Unidos, is pushing to get students on that committee. She’s been working with Nguyen and other students.

Rojas spoke at the most recent board meeting on July 21 and said she and students had been left without answers about how they will be a part of the process.

“These voices are the voices that should be at the center of this review,” she said. “They are the ones that are most impacted by the dress code. They’re here today telling you all of their stories, all of the ways they have been traumatized by the current existing dress code.”

Avants said more details about how the process will work are still being finalized.

“I think the idea of holding focus groups with young women and girls who have been recently disciplined through the dress code should be considered,” Nguyen told the board on July 21.

“Because no matter how many people say that this is OK or that this is normal, that doesn’t erase the very real trauma that countless students have endured because of dress code experiences like being blamed for sexual harassment or assault they have experienced on campus based on what they were wearing.”

Not all the speakers at the meeting wished to see the dress code changed.

Rhonda Carr-Smith, who said she was a 1983 graduate of the district, said she was disheartened.

“What saddens me and made me want to speak is to hear how these children speak about the district. First off, having an education is a privilege.

“It’s just so disheartening to see young people today; they have no respect for authority, they have no appreciation whatsoever of the gift they are getting. When I go to school dressed inappropriately, it’s distracting. When you try to be something you’re not, it’s distracting.”

She asked the room to think and pray about the issue.

O’Farrell has noted that 62% of parents favored the dress code as is or stricter in a survey.

The Education Lab is a local journalism initiative that highlights education issues critical to the advancement of the San Joaquin Valley. It is funded by donors. Read more from The Bee’s Education Lab on our website.

This story was originally published July 28, 2021 at 7:30 AM.