Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, January 15, 1995 TAG: 9501170059
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOEL TURNER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
The line of poverty can be drawn in school clothes.
Children from low-income families can't afford the stylish jackets, sweaters and shirts worn by their more affluent classmates. Nor do they have the high-priced basketball or running shoes endorsed by athletic superstars.
Poor youngsters, often dressed in hand-me-downs from older siblings, can only look with longing at their schoolmates' designer duds.
Sometimes, this becomes a source of embarrassment and resentment for underprivileged children, who can be teased by other students.
For aggressive students in large metropolitan school divisions, the next step sometimes is trying to steal stylish clothes and shoes, leading to fights, violence and discipline problems.
The solution to the problem? Uniforms.
More and more school divisions nationwide are turning to uniforms to help restore order in schools, reduce discipline problems and help children feel better about themselves. Last summer, California became the first state to authorize school boards to require uniforms.
Advocates of uniforms believe that they help students behave better and make better grades. If the resentment and conflicts caused by clothes are removed, they say, the students will have more time for their classes. There will be fewer distractions.
Children tend to feel better about themselves if everyone wears the same thing, said June Million, director of public information for the National Association of Elementary School Principals.
The use of uniforms ``does seem to improve morale and help children get along better in some cases,'' Million said, adding that research on the issue is not finished.
She said there is no definitive evidence that uniforms improve academic performance or eliminate discipline problems.
Uniforms help parents cut the tremendous expense for clothes, Million said. They also can offset problems caused by students who wear fancy clothes bought with profits from drug sales, she said.
Some school divisions have used uniforms to try to prevent students from wearing gang clothes, Million said.
The movement toward uniforms in public schools, she said, "started about five years ago, mainly in schools in inner-city neighborhoods, and it has spread rapidly."
She didn't have an estimate of the number of public schools using uniforms. They are being worn mostly in large cities such as Baltimore and Chicago.
In Virginia, uniforms are being used in a few public schools in Richmond and Tidewater, with plans to expand to more schools next year.
At the Douglass Park Elementary School in Portsmouth, a voluntary uniform system has worked well during its first year, said Principal Gordon Ellsworth.
Ellsworth said the suspension rate is down this year, with fewer conflicts among students. He said the school's image is improving.
In Western Virginia, school administrators have discussed uniforms, but most see no need for them. They have fewer discipline problems and less violence than their counterparts in larger areas.
Roanoke is considering uniforms for its alternative-education program, but not for its regular schools.
When the alternative-education classes move to a former shopping mall at the Hershberger Road interchange on Interstate 581 next month, the students might be required to wear uniforms, said Michael McIntosh, administrator of the program.
Last year, a small group of students in a regional alternative-education program in the Roanoke Valley wore uniforms.
School uniforms are likely to become an issue in Virginia soon, however, even if they have created little interest in the western part of the state.
Gov. George Allen's Commission on Champion Schools has made uniforms an issue in school reform.
The commission has recommended that every school division be given the authority to require students to wear uniforms at school. A bill will be introduced during the General Assembly's current session to give that power to school boards.
If the legislation is enacted, each school board could adopt either mandatory or voluntary rules for uniforms. In schools where uniforms are worn voluntarily, the rate of participation has ranged from 30 percent to 95 percent.
Generally, there is more flexibility in what constitutes a "uniform" in public schools than in military academies and parochial schools.
In private schools with uniforms, boys wear dress pants, shirts and ties. Girls wear blouses with jumpers or skirts. The uniforms cost about $40, and most schools donate the uniforms to parents who can't afford them.
At Douglass Park School in Portsmouth, for example, students can meet the dress code with blue jeans and T-shirts. The basic uniform is white tops and blue bottoms.
Ellsworth said that about 50 percent of the Douglass Park students participate in the voluntary program.
Full participation would be preferable, Ellsworth said, but the limited participation will help create an environment where more students will be willing to wear uniforms in the future.
At Bowling Park Elementary in Norfolk, uniforms are worn by third-, fourth- and fifth-graders. The students wear white shirts and blouses with blue pants and skirts.
Parents support the uniform system at Bowling Park, said Laguna Foster, a fourth-grade teacher.
"It takes time for everyone to accept the system, to make everyone feel comfortable with it," Foster said.
To ease the transition, he said, Bowling Park asks students to wear their uniforms only one day a week.
Parochial schools such as Roanoke Catholic have a more restrictive dress code. Boys must wear khaki pants with blue or white dress shirts. Girls must wear blue or white blouses with navy blue slacks. The school also has strict regulations on hairstyles, jewelry and other attire.
Roanoke School Superintendent Wayne Harris said he would be receptive to proposals from parents and teachers for uniforms. But he said uniforms will work only with the support of parents.
"I've had two or three people ask me if I would support it. And I said I would have no problem with it if the vast majority of parents and the school principals support it," Harris said.
In some cities, uniforms are worn voluntarily at some schools, but not in the entire school system. If Roanoke adopted uniforms, Harris said, they probably would be worn only in schools where there was strong support for them.
Harris believes that uniforms can help reduce thefts, but he said that is not a major problem in Roanoke.
Superintendent John Kent said he sees no need for uniforms in Bedford County.
"If there are problems about some children not having clothes, we have community groups who will help find clothes for them," he said.
Roanoke County Superintendent Deanna Gordon said clothes and conflicts over them are not a problem in the suburban school system.
"I think they might help the pride and self-esteem in some school systems, but I don't see the need in a school system like ours," Gordon said.
Botetourt County Superintendent Clarence McClure said he understands the financial pressures on some parents to buy clothes for their children. But he doesn't think that uniforms are needed in suburban and rural school divisions.
"We read about kids fighting and killing each other over jackets and tennis shoes, but we don't have that here," he said.
Salem Superintendent Wayne Tripp also said that he does not see a need for uniforms.
Some people have questioned whether schools legally can require students to wear uniforms. Since most states have voluntary systems, there have been few legal challenges on the issue, and there is no clear precedent.
by CNB