Look How Far We've Come.... Yikes!

August 27, 2008 by dave

As a father of daughters, I've had the usual fatherly reaction to some of my daughters' outfits. So, when I saw this headline, "Ohio Cheerleaders Told Uniforms Are Too Short for Class", I figured this Fox News piece was a typical argument between a school and cheerleaders over a uniform.

Monroe Schools Superintendent Elizabeth Lolli told WLWT TV that cheerleaders were instructed to wear long shorts and T-shirts underneath their uniforms at a pep rally Friday.

"The skirts that the cheerleaders wear are very short, and they're very tight and they're slit so they can do the gymnastics that are required of a cheerleader," Lolli told WLWT.com.

Lolli said the skirts are allowed only during assemblies and games.

"You want to have students wear appropriate clothing during the educational period of the day, and then after school, wear the appropriate clothing for the event," she said.

The uniforms have not been an issue in previous years because the district's dress code was not specific on required length for shorts and skirts. The policy was clarified earlier this year, requiring that the bottom of shorts and skirts be no more than 3 inches above the knee.

That sounds reasonable to me. The last thing that schools need are cheerleaders running around in outfits that distract their fellow male students. While I question whether they should be allowed at games as well, I applaud the school's efforts to create a positive learning environment.

I looked down through the article and noticed that it mentioned parents. I thought, "Oh good. The parents are supporting the school." Ummm.... no.

Parent Becky Daniel said the school's dress code should not apply to cheerleader's uniforms.

"My daughter is a senior, this is her last year," Daniel told the station. "We paid for uniforms and they should be able to wear them on game day."

What is Becky thinking? He major concern seems to be that her daughter gets to wear this uniform to class. Why isn't she concerned about whether the uniform is too short or whether it distracts from classroom instruction?

This is an example of where parents' priorities are completely messed up. I can't help but wonder if Becky is what my kids used to call a "cool mom." My son Alex had a middle school experience with a "cool mom" who ended up being arrested for signing kids out of school and giving them pot. Fortunately, my son wasn't one of them, but it did change his attitude towards "cool moms".

I think too often, parents try too hard to be friends to their kids and not hard enough to be parents. Our kids already have lots of friends, but they only have one set of parents. We owe it to them to be a parent. We need to make the hard decisions that no one else will make for us. These parents should be supporting this school's efforts to create an environment where their children can learn instead of worrying about what they paid for a cheerleader uniform.

Permalink