Letter To The Editor:

As a former educator I would like to reply to the parents who are upset about the dress code of the Bradley County Schools. I have taught in a public charter school where all the students were required to wear an uniform similar to what Bradley County has mandated. Seeing the children dressed in uniforms does raise the level of the learning environment. The children come to school neatly dressed and the school has a look of professional learning about it. Visitors coming into the school often comment on how nice the children look. It also teaches the children discipline in a dress code. The shirts are tucked in and the clothes are of a higher level than jeans and a tee shirt. When they go into the work force they are going to be required to dress in a certain manner. The uniforms also take away the competition of wearing the brand name jeans and shirts which some children can't afford. Everyone is on equal ground. It is easier on the parents because there is no longer the battle of what they think is appropriate and what the child thinks is appropriate which is often two different opinions. It really cuts down on the amount of clothes you have to buy for you don't have to buy a large range of jeans and tee shirts.

Uniforms do not take away the child's individually. The child's individuality is seen in his or her personality, the child's art work, talent in music, strength in the academics, skills in the sports, and in many other ways. Jeans and a tee shirt do not make a child an individualist. When they play sports they all dress a certain way yet everyone knows the distinction between each player because of their skills. Jeans and a tee shirt do not an individual make.

Lee Steel,
Cleveland.

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