• 05:32

  Strong Episode 3: Courtney

  30,068 Views

  By metaops

  Promoted

BY JESSICA SMITH



A Texas junior high teacher is catching some heat for coloring inside the lines. CNN explains.

“You can see where the bottom line is filled in on Sheldon William’s head. The school said William’s hair cut violated school’s dresscode. So instead of getting on the phone and calling mom, the assistant principal went ahead and filled in the design with a sharpie.”

The school’s dresscode prohibits “hair designs shaved into the hair,” but William’s mom, Philleniea, says the two lines have never been a problem before. She’s not too happy with how the school handled the problem. Here’s what she said to KSLA.

“If the parents gives you permission to do such things then its OK to do that, but to take the initiative and just say ‘I’m going to color your hair in with a permanent marker’...that’s just disrespectful.”

And for twelve year old Sheldon, it’s pretty simple.

“I was kind of mad. Because I don’t want no Sharpie marker in my hair!”

The principal is new to the district, and said she thought permanent markers were the school’s protocol for hair cut violations. So, in the Longview Texas News-Journal, William’s mom concludes,

“They must have been coloring kids heads for a while.”

In the same article the superintendent responds, saying he’s “truly embarrassed about what has happened...I want to apologize to the parents publicly about what has happened.”

The apology doesn’t cut it for Williams. She claims the principal said the lines were gang related--and the Marshall News Messenger reports William’s mom filed a grievance with the school district.

“Kids have Mohawks and other hairdos, and I can understand that, but two lines? How is that gang related?”

But the Huffington Post points out, dress code debates aren’t that unsual.

“School dress codes and how violations are handled are often contentious issues among schools, students and parents. Earlier this month, a 12-year old Nebraska student was told by her principal she couldn’t wear a necklace that looks like a rosary, citing its similarity to a gang symbol.”

The dress code still stands--but school administrators say they won’t use Sharpies to write up students for violations again. And for now, Sheldon has a new hair cut--this time, with no stripes.