Orchard Elementary School

Vacaville Unified School District Model Dress Code

Vacaville Unified School District (VUSD) created this Model Dress Code to help VUSD schools update and improve their student dress code policies and enforcement processes. Student dress codes should support equitable educational access and should not reinforce gender stereotypes. Student dress codes and administrative enforcement should not reinforce or increase marginalization or oppression of any group based on race, gender, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, household income, gender identity or cultural observance. This Model Dress Code is specifically intended to address recent and escalating controversy and conversation both locally and across the nation about overreaching and detrimental dress codes for some K-12 school students. Our values are: ∙ All students should be able to dress comfortably for school without fear of or actual unnecessary discipline or body shaming. ∙ All students and staff should understand that they are responsible for managing their own personal "distractions" without regulating individual students' clothing/self expression. ∙ Teachers can focus on teaching without the additional and often uncomfortable burden of dress code enforcement. ∙ Students should not face unnecessary barriers to school attendance. ∙ Reasons for conflict and inconsistent discipline should be minimized whenever possible.

I. GOALS OF A STUDENT DRESS CODE A student dress code should accomplish several goals: ∙ Maintain a safe learning environment in classes where protective or supportive clothing is needed, such as chemistry/biology (eye or body protection), dance (bare feet, tights/leotards), or PE (athletic attire/shoes). ∙ Allow students to wear clothing of their choice that is comfortable. ∙ Allow students to wear clothing that expresses their self-identified gender. ∙ Allow students to wear religious attire without fear of discipline or discrimination. ∙ Prevent students from wearing clothing with offensive images or language, including profanity, hate speech, and pornography. ∙ Prevent students from wearing clothing with images or language depicting or advocating violence or the use of alcohol or drugs. ∙ Ensure that all students are treated equitably regardless of gender/gender identification, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, body type/size, religion, and personal style.

II. RECOMMENDED DRESS CODE POLICY The primary responsibility for a student’s attire resides with the student and parents or guardians. The school district and individual schools are responsible for seeing that student attire does not interfere with the health or safety of any student, and that student attire does not contribute to a hostile or intimidating atmosphere for any student. Students should be given the most choice possible in how they dress for school. Any restrictions must be necessary to support the overall educational goals of the school and must be explained within the dress code. Districts should set the student dress code and enforcement policies for their entire district and take steps to ensure that all schools in the district adopt and follow it. Too often individual schools create their own student dress codes and enforce them in different ways that result in inequities within districts and in many cases policies and enforcement that are not consistent with the law or the district’s intent.

1. Basic Principle: Certain body parts must be covered for all students Clothes must be worn in a way such that genitals, buttocks, and nipples are covered with non-see through material. Cleavage should not have coverage requirements. All items listed in the “must wear” and “may wear” categories below must meet this basic principle.

2. Students Must Wear:* ∙ Shirt: for example, tank top, sweater/dress/ ∙ Bottom: for example, pants/sweatpants/shorts/skirt/dress/leggings ∙ Shoes; activity-specific shoes requirements are permitted (for example for sports/PE, industrial arts classes, and science labs) ∙ Items and apparel in accordance with state and local health mandates (such as face masks, shields, etc) * Courses that include attire as part of the curriculum (for example, professionalism, public speaking, and job readiness) may include assignment-specific dress, but should not focus on covering girls’ bodies or promoting culturally-specific attire.

3. Students May Wear: ∙ Hats, including religious headwear and durags ∙ Hoodie sweatshirts (over the head is allowed) ∙ Fitted pants, including leggings, yoga pants and “skinny jeans” ∙ Midriff baring shirts ∙ Pajamas ∙ Ripped jeans, as long as underwear is not exposed. ∙ Tank tops, including spaghetti straps, halter tops, and “tube” (strapless) tops ∙ Athletic attire ∙ Clothing with commercial or athletic logos provided they do not violate Section 2 above.

4. Students Cannot Wear: Unacceptable clothing and apparel includes any clothing, accessory or apparel that explicitly or implicitly displays or promotes the use of alcohol, tobacco, drugs, weapons, racial or ethnic slurs, is demeaning to others, gang affiliation or identity, violence, is sexually suggestive, derogatory or profane material, hate speech, or disrupts the learning environment (VUSD board policy). ∙ Any item not designed to be worn as apparel (i.e. flags, blankets, towels) ∙ Visible underwear; however, visible waistbands or straps on undergarments worn under other clothing are not a violation. ∙ Headgear that obscures the face (except as a religious observance).