Texas Student's Fight Against Hair Discrimination Highlights Ongoing Struggles with School Dress Codes

Good Day!

Can you believe there are still schools out there that don’t start up until after Labor Day? Really now! And there are schools who have been in session for the past month. My condolences. Stay strong teachers. We need you!

Cheers ☕

Judge rules against Darryl George

Darryl George, a Barbers Hill High School student in Belvieu, Texas, was suspended because his hair violated the school's dress code policy. George, who is black, wears his hair in a style that is common among the black community—dreads and locs.

For most of 2023-2024, George spent most of the school year on in-school suspension away from his regular classes. The CROWN Act (Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair) was implemented in the state of Texas on September 1, 2023. George was placed on suspension before the Act was implemented.

With the support of his mother, Darresha George, George filed a civil lawsuit against the school district. The suit filed included the district superintendent, Barbers Hill High School principal and assistant principal, and Texas Governor Greg Abbot and Attorney General Ken Paxton.

Just this past Tuesday, the federal judge presiding over the case, U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Brown, dismissed most of the claims made by Geroge and his mother. One of the claims George made was that the enforcement of the dress code regarding his hairstyle was primarily being used against black students and that this enforcement was a violation of his First Amendment rights. Judge Brown determined that there was no precedent to support the claim that hair length is protected under the First Amendment.

However, George's claim of sexual discrimination stood. Judge Brown stated in his ruling, "What is the rationale for the dress code's distinction between male and female students? The claim survives this initial stage because the district does not provide any reason for sex-based distinctions in its dress code."

Judge Brown recalled a similar case from the 1970s in which the judge stated, "The presence and enforcement of the hair-cut rule cause far more disruption of the classroom instructional process than the hair it seeks to prohibit."

To this, Judge Brown responded, "Regrettably, so too, here."

Bear in Classroom

Imagine you are a teacher getting ready for the first day of school. As you are getting your classroom set up, you head to make copies of worksheets for your students.

Upon returning to your classroom, there waiting to greet you is a…

Bear!

That is exactly what happened when Peak to Peak Mountain Charter School elementary teacher Elaine Salmon re-entered her classroom after making copies of worksheets.

"When I came back, I opened my classroom door, and there was this bear charging towards the door." She then quickly slammed the door, locking the bear in the classroom.

She quickly returned to the office to call her husband, Ian Sawrey, as she had left her cell phone in the classroom. When her husband came, he went to the classroom and knocked on the window to get the bear's attention. Because of how the door was constructed, the door has to be held open to stay open. When Ian opened the door, he again called for the bear's attention. The bear walked by him within a foot of where he was standing. He looked at him and then turned to run back into the mountains, where he more than likely came from.

The only damage to the classroom was to the earthquake kit. In it contained a few snacks which the bear devoured.

Salmon's school is located in Pine Club Mountain, California, about 90 miles north of Los Angeles. The school's slogan is "Home of the Bears."

Later, the bear came back to say hi again to Salmon. Or maybe he missed the classroom already?

The Final Minute

1. A dozen Oklahoma school districts have declared they will not comply with State Superintendent Ryan Walters' request to check students' immigration status, citing legal and ethical concerns. This resistance is part of a growing backlash against Walters' controversial policies, which have focused heavily on culture war issues rather than addressing core educational needs. The conflict highlights the tension between state-level political agendas and federal laws protecting students' rights to education, with many educators and administrators choosing to prioritize their students' well-being over what they see as divisive political mandates.

2. In a significant development for Iowa's education system, a federal appeals court has reversed a lower court's ruling, allowing a controversial state law banning books with certain sexual content from K-12 public schools to go into effect. The decision has sparked praise from Iowa's governor and attorney general, who frame it as a protection of parental rights, while opponents, including authors, publishers, and LGBTQ+ advocates, view it as a setback for free speech and inclusive education. This ruling highlights the ongoing tension between state-level educational policies and First Amendment rights, with school districts now facing the challenge of implementing the law just as the new school year begins, potentially leading to the removal of hundreds of books from school libraries and classrooms.

3. Governor Josh Shapiro has signed a budget bill allocating over $11 billion to public education, marking the largest investment in the state's history. The budget includes a $1.1 billion increase in K-12 public education funding, with nearly 65% of new dollars directed to districts with the greatest needs, such as the Reading School District, which is set to receive $41 million in additional funding. This substantial investment aims to support various initiatives, including hiring more teachers to reduce class sizes, improving literacy programs, and enhancing student support services, with state officials emphasizing that these investments will yield long-term benefits for Pennsylvania's educational landscape.

4. In a shocking case that highlights the complex intersection of mental health, education, and criminal justice, a Florida student has been sentenced to five years in prison for assaulting a school employee who confiscated his Nintendo Switch. The incident, which left the employee unconscious and suffering from ongoing trauma, has sparked debate about the adequacy of support for students with special needs in public schools. While the judge cited the student's lack of remorse in his sentencing decision, the case has also raised questions about the appropriateness of harsh prison sentences for juveniles with mental health issues, with the student's mother arguing that treatment, rather than incarceration, would be a more suitable approach.

Closing Bell

On this day in 2008…

Air Bed & Breakfast, aka Airbnb, was founded by three friends who just graduated from Rhode Island School of Design. They experienced initial success from the start, but then they began to run out of money, and the current CEO, Brian Chesky, racked up $30,000 in credit card debt. An ingenious idea was sparked in which the friends put their design degrees to work. During the 2008 presidential campaign, they designed cereal boxes for the two presidential candidates running that year: Barack Obama and John McCain. At $40 a pop, because they were limited edition, they sold out and netted $30,000. The rest is history.