Carson High School administrators agree to discussions on dress code changes following student protests

Students at Carson High School have been participating in protests regarding some aspects of the student dress code that students allege are sexist due to the language singling out female students.

Unlike most of the elementary and middle schools in Carson City, Carson High School does not require uniforms; instead, students are free to wear casual clothing, so long as it adheres to the dress code.

However, part of the dress code bans clothing that exposes a student's midriff and shoulders.

Rules four and five state: “Blouses and shirts should not show cleavage and skin should not be visible at midriff when arms are raised. Halter-tops, backless shirts, sleeveless shirts and strapless garments are not allowed. Shirts must have sleeves and cover the shoulders.”

These rules are at the center of the recent controversy due to the alleged sexism and underaged-sexualization of the female students, according to the students taking part in the protests.

This push against traditional school dress code policy is a part of a nation-wide movement that has been traveling through social media. Hashtags like #freethemidriff on social platforms like Instagram and TikTok connect students who are participating in their own protests to gather inspiration from their peers. Students generally don’t view this type of subject as a trend, instead it is an example to illustrate how students can make their voices heard.

Kimberly Buraga, a senior and one of the main organizers of the movement, expressed her concerns.

“We believe that the dress code is a form of sexualizing us girls because if someone finds our shoulders or bellies as distracting or sexual, there is a problem,” said Buraga. “Normal body parts shouldn’t be sexualized, especially because they’re only sexualized on girls and not guys.”

While the dress code itself does not explicitly mention a student’s gender, four out of the fifteen rules address clothes traditionally worn by females such as blouses, skirts, and dresses. The rest of the rules can be considered to be neutral among the sexes.

Buraga and other protesters are also troubled by the possibility of teachers sexualizing or being distracted by minors.

“It’s mainly teachers who (regulate and enforce dress code), which shows that if they find our body parts as sexual, they should not be working with minors,” said Buraga.

Besides the concerns over sexism, the protesters are also critical over the policy for hats and other casual head-coverings. Students say that the school staff is rather strict over enforcing this policy. Protesters are looking for some kind of reform involving this issue.

The actual policy and implantation of the dress code aren’t the only concerns; student protesters aren’t satisfied with the punishment associated with breaking the dress code policy. At Carson High School the punishment for the first offense is two day lunch detention and being forced to change into brown shirts and brown pants according to the current rules.

These brown clothes are unflattering and very noticeable if a student is forced to wear them, according to students.

The punishment of brown sweatwear, according to Principal Bob Chambers, started as a solution to a concern over the tank-top strap length problem that was notable when he worked at the school as a dean.

However, Chambers admitted to the punishment to be in poor taste and is open to changing the punishments of the policy.

“There’s a lot of room for growth,” Chambers said.

A protest was planned for Aug. 27 during the lunch period; however, when protesters brought posters and signs, they were taken away by school administration and thus the protest that was planned did not occur.

The reasoning behind the protest prevention on behalf of the school, according to administrators, is that it became more of a school disturbance rather than what the original cause meant it to be.

As for the confiscation of the posters, Chambers explained it was a miscommunication through the staff.

“An irritant was (that) students were hanging stuff up in the building without permission,” said Chambers. “They had pretty negative messages.”

There are rules against hanging flyers or posters around the school without school permission in order to regulate what material is allowed to be presented by Carson High School.

While in the midst of all of the protest chaos, the protester’s signs were taken away mistakenly based on the misconception that these were signs to be hung up.

“When they first took our posters, we felt like they were invading us or our rights, maybe,” said Buraga regarding her initial reaction on the day of the protest. “When they explained that they were somewhat on our side, we understood and got help from them on how to do things correctly and the right way.”

Buraga explained the school reached out to the protesters to deal with this matter.

“We always agreed on keeping things calm and more importantly staying together.” Burgaga said on their plans to move forward in cooperation with the school.

On Oct. 7th, both students and faculty met before school to revise the dress code policy and punishments. Principal Chambers first reviewed the expectations for manners and debate for all involved in the meeting.

During the meeting, students and staff, which included counselors, deans and teachers, went around the table expressing their own concerns. The average answers can be drawn up to four areas of concerns: rules about casual headwear like hats, hoods, and bandanas; the isolation of feminine clothes within the policies; the consistency of enforcement of the dress code among staff; and finally the mode of punishment for breaking policy.

The meeting lasted under an hour and all participants were assigned homework to research new disciplinary actions and different language that could be used when describing rules and their consequences.

The next meeting was scheduled for Oct. 14 and a smaller committee of students and faculty gathered to discuss the homework they set for themselves.

Before the aforementioned homework, they reviewed two sets of data pertaining to dress code. Poll data from teacher Will Houk’s classes was presented, which contain a very diverse mix of mostly upperclassmen. This allowed the committee to see a glimpse of what student opinion is on the matter.

The students spearheading this campaign are Kimberly Burgaga, as well as Yaritza Hernandez, Ana Lucia Galindo Ledezma, and Evelyn Anaya. This group of upper/lowerclassmen feel comfortable and confident about these negotiation meetings with the school.

The committee came to a census on one major issue: the disciplinary measures.

Each member of the meeting was given a moment to give their opinion about the current discipline plan and ideas for new ones.

Many people called out the “Browns” or mandatory sweatware students must wear when they arrive at school wearing clothing against the dress code, but the group came to the conclusion that in their potential new discipline plan, they would offer up different clothing options such as CHS merchandise.

They also aim to remove the possibility of getting In School Suspension or traditional detention because of a violation of dress code.

The first level of consequence would be a change of clothes, a call home, as well as documented in Infinite Campus, which is a portal for students and parents to check grades.

On the second offense, students have to do community service around the school during their lunch period, and there would be a parent meeting on the third offense.

The next closed meeting is set to take place on Oct. 21 at 2:05 pm.