pk Yonge's dress code policy vs. Alachua County's dress code policy

Although PK Yonge Developmental School has a dress code policy, it is not strongly enforced. We spoke to one student about her experience with the policy:

Just like every other school, PK Yonge has a dress code which you can find online. But the way it is enforced is a completely different thing. The school dress code that you can find online is for the most part like any other school's dress code. But when the principal talks to us about the dress code, she tells us, “Your clothes should cover your private parts and there shouldn’t be inappropriate or offensive signs or words on your shirt.” That’s really the only part of the dress code that is enforced, which is really short and simple compared to the long list of rules that are found online. This isn’t a bad thing that the dress code is presented like this. Also, I have never seen a student dress coded.

Of the 7 PK Yonge students who responded to our survey, 2 (30%) had been dress coded one time (for spaghetti straps and for a hat). In comparison, 60% of Alachua County students had been dress coded. At PK Yonge, students are half as likely to be dress coded, but there is no reason to suggest that Alachua County students perform better in school because they are dress coded more often.

From our research, comparing the Alachua County School Board's dress code and the PK Yonge dress code, the PK Yonge dress code is better and more fair. The Alachua County dress code leaves students feeling uncomfortable, facing biases, and girls especially are receiving unfair and inappropriate treatment because of how dress codes are enforced. The PK Yonge dress code tries to eliminate these problems.