School uniforms should be mandatory,

Topeka Capital-Journal, The, Sep 19, 1999

Kansas Senate majority leader says

The Associated Press

The idea of uniformed school children is catching on in many Kansas schools.

But Senate Majority Leader Tim Emert wants to take the idea a step further by requiring every student in Kansas public schools to wear a uniform.

The Independence Republican has filed legislation requiring local school boards to adopt dress codes that would mandate the wearing of uniforms to class and all school-supervised activities.

"I think so much of the problem we have in schools now is based on peer pressure, and so much of that is based on material purchases," he said.

For students, he said, it is a matter of "whether I've got the right logo on my chest, when what we're here for is to learn."

In a growing number of public schools, uniforms already are required.

In Wichita, "standardized dress codes" were in place in 20 of the 101 schools and alternative school sites in the district, spokeswoman Laurie Dove said.

Wichita's uniform policy covers one high school, as well as middle and elementary schools.

"In the main, it's working out well," said state Sen. Barbara Lawrence, a Wichita Republican who is chairwoman of the Senate Education Committee. "There are a few who have not appreciated the change. It's the kids who initially find it hard to accept."

She said Emert's proposal would receive an early hearing when lawmakers convened in January.

In Kansas City, Kan., the Argentine Middle School has a uniform policy for its sixth-, seventh- and eighth-graders. This is the first year for the program.

Another Sedgwick County district, Renwick, has three schools that require students to wear uniforms.

That district, with headquarters in Andale, is being scrutinized by the American Civil Liberties Union. A decision whether to challenge the district's policy in court will be made when the organization's board meets in Kansas City on Sept. 25.

"If a school district adopts a uniform policy, it has to provide some kind of opt-out provision, on religious grounds, certainly," said the ACLU's Dick Kurtenbach. "It also needs to show there's some reason for taking that drastic step."

Emert's proposed legislation says the uniform requirement is designed to provide an orderly school environment and promote school pride and better behavior by pupils.

The bill would exempt students whose parents objected to uniforms on religious or philosophical grounds. The local school board would have to provide uniforms if parents could not afford to buy them.

The Kansas Association of School Boards doesn't like the idea of a mandated school uniform plan, spokesman Mark Tallman said. But he said it would support a policy that leaves the decision to local school boards.