Public provides split feedback on Lynnfield dress code

LYNNFIELD — The School Committee agreed to revise and clarify its proposed dress-code policy after feedback from students, teachers, and parents at its meeting Tuesday.

Committee member Jim Dillon read the most recent update to the proposed policy, which has been revised throughout the summer.

Lynnfield High School seniors Maeve Donovan, Ella Hayman, and Emma Rose spoke together about the proposed policy and emphasized the importance it has on students. The three students had presented to the committee as eighth-graders in 2021 to spearhead previous changes to the dress-code policy.

“We have seen the new revised proposal and believe it to be a much better alternative than the original proposal from a few weeks ago,” Donovan said. “Yet we still think it is necessary for you to understand why this decision is so important.”

Hayman, who is the daughter of Committee member Jamie Hayman, said the policy before the change in 2021 was “outdated, unrealistic, and biased toward female students.”

“The significant impact a dress code can have on students cannot be understated,” Donovan said. “One of the most pressing issues that students and teachers are currently facing is a mental-health crisis… and it seems imperative that you understand the impact that stress can have on students with obesity. When discussing young girls’ and teens’ mental health, body image consistently comes up as a topic of conversation.”

The conversation surrounding the proposed policy “directly” impacts LHS and Lynnfield Middle School students, Rose said.

“We believe student opinions and perspectives deserve to be heard,” she said. “We are not implying that students need to be directly involved for every policy change. But we will encourage this committee to engage with LHS students and solicit feedback to learn about LHS culture and what actually goes on at our school. A policy change during the summer limits the ability to have students’ voices heard, and we find that very disappointing.”

Committee Chair Kate DePrizio said the goal of the proposed new policy is to create “more balance” to what the committee, principals, and teachers observe in the schools.

“This committee is absolutely committed to reducing barriers to learning and absolutely committed to transparency and feedback,” she said.

DePrizio asked if the students had any specific feedback on the proposed policy as it stands. All three agreed that they were happy with it.

LMS sixth-grade teacher Cynthia O’Neil said she was happy to see the committee revise the dress-code policy, share its revisions with the public, and invite feedback.

She addressed one aspect of the proposed policy, which prohibits students from wearing “sleepwear” to school. She asked the committee to specify the wording in the document to ensure students are allowed to wear flannel pants and slippers.

Jamie Hayman said he is concerned about the “ambiguity” about the term “sleepwear” and requested a section to be added to prohibit swimwear as well.

Parent Allison Donahue addressed the “other perspective” of the dress-code policy.

“We’ve heard a lot about how telling girls what they should or should not wear impacts their mental health and their confidence and self-esteem, and that school should be a supportive environment where they can learn and be their best selves,” she said. “The clothes that girls are wearing, that may or may not be appropriate — it’s subjective — impact other kids who may not have the body shape to wear it. And that impacts their mental health and their well-being, and perhaps the ability for them to feel supported and be their best selves.”

DePrizio said that the committee wants the dress-code policy to be as objective as possible to avoid any room for error.

“I think we’re all in agreement that we want to be very clear that we’re not making a judgment call on someone’s body or body-shaming or having discretion there,” DePrizio said.

She said that Dillon and Committee member Jenny Sheehan, who serve as the two members of the policy subcommittee, will need to revise the policy to add specific language regarding sleepwear and swimwear, while continuing to keep equity for all students in mind.

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