The majority of Lee County School District Students believe that our dress code policies are unjust, especially against young girls. 

   As a girl, I have personally been dress-coded twice. Both times I was wearing sweatpants and a shirt that showed a sliver of an inch of midriff. While waiting in the office I was told that I should “know better” than to wear that “inappropriate shirt”. This shaming and over-sexualization of young female students takes place far too often in our district’s high schools. 

   We are told not to wear things that might cause a distraction to the school’s learning environment, this statement often disregards the amount of class-time that is lost when girls are dress coded. In the 2021-2022 school year, Lee County has implemented a new policy that states that students who break dress code must stay in the office until a change of clothes is brought to them from home. This is completely ridiculous. This new policy only targets young girls taking us away from the classroom to sit in an office because our shirt was “inappropriate”. Due to the inherently sexist nature of the dress code, this new rule makes it so that the girls of Lee County do not receive equal education to their male counterparts. 

   The Lee County School Board prides themselves on their non-discriminatory policy, which states that they do not discriminate nor tolerate discrimination on the basis of sex. This is blatantly not true. Male students in the district's high schools often wear tops that show their shoulders, however, they are never dress coded. Female students that wear tops that show their shoulders are seeked out and punished. This is not equality. 

     The dress code states that:

"Tank tops, muscle shirts, or any clothing which may be distracting are prohibited."  Clearly, tops that show shoulders are only deemed distracting when worn by female students.

   This outdated dress code was formed on the premise of sexualizing young girls and the notion that their male peers cannot help but be distracted by their shoulders or stomachs. If our district’s mission is “to ensure that each student achieves his/her highest personal potential”, then the first thing they should do is correct their outdated and discriminatory dress code. Please sign the petition above to make this happen.