Saturday, Jul. 11, 2009

Dress code discussed illegally by Granite City school board

Granite City school leaders release tape

GRANITE CITY -- The Granite City school board has released a recording of the closed session in which members illegally discussed a pending school uniform policy.

The board voted unanimously to go into executive session May 12 to discuss a controversial proposal to allow school uniforms. While the public was allowed to address the board on the issue, the board members held their discussion behind closed doors.

The Open Meetings Act does allow certain subjects to be discussed out of the public's hearing, such as student discipline, pending litigation and personnel. However, school uniform policies do not qualify as an exception under the law, said Don Craven, an attorney with the Illinois Press Association.

At the request of the News-Democrat, the board released an audio recording of the portions of the closed session that concerned the uniform policy, which the board approved at the following meeting without discussion in open session.

In fact, a board member is heard on the recording saying that any member who had a problem with any aspect of the policy should have it addressed in private. It is not apparent which member is speaking.

"If there's anything anyone has, we have to have it addressed and solved by the next meeting," the board member says. "We can't have this discussion in open session. When it comes up on the agenda the next meeting, we'll pass it in open session."

The portion of the recording released is about 45 minutes long. The portion of the board's discussion that was not released, according to board attorney Tom Schooley, involves possible litigation, which the Open Meetings Act exempts.

Most of the board's discussion centered on specific aspects of the proposed uniform policy -- whether to require shirts to be tucked in, whether shorts should be belted at the elementary level, etc. -- rather than whether or not to enact the policy in the first place. Again, it is not apparent which members are speaking.

"I would compare it to the pair of shorts you'd wear to play a nice round of golf, you know, similar to a pair of Dockers, not the old-fashioned basketball stuff," one board member said. "We're not even thinking about the big basketball shorts because that would be totally against what we're trying to do."

Extensive discussion took place on the issue of hoodies, and how difficult it would be for teachers and administrators to get kids to keep hoods off their faces.

"I'd like the teachers to be able to get back to teaching and the administrators to be able to administrate," one member said.

One member did say he didn't think cargo pants were a security issue, and another argued they did not look as "fit and professional."

"But these are kids, not adults," the member argued.

Later in the meeting, one of the members proposed waiting to vote on the policy until the following meeting because he was afraid there would be protests at graduation and during final exams.

The uniform policy was unanimously approved at the May 27 meeting without public discussion and will take effect this fall.