A St. Landry Parish School Board member says the way some teachers dress leaves "little to the imagination."
"We want to keep our children’s minds in the right places opposed to having it on something else they may be thinking," said board member Anthony Standberry.
He said what some teachers wear in the classroom is inappropriate. "Blouses or shirts that some people wear are too revealing and some pants are too revealing."
Standberry said he has not seen many issues with what male staff members wear. "males usually wear clothes a certain way. Shirts are usually button-down shirts or whatever. I haven’t seen very much issues with male clothing compared to female clothing."
The current dress code policy is from the early 1990’s. Standberry believes the policy needs to be revamped to match the changes in style.
"We’re a $142 million corporation," said Superintendent Patrick Jenkins. "We want to be reflective of that type of business. We’re in the business of education, but we want to be professional."
Jenkins hopes revamping the policy will reduce workman’s compensation claims.
"Injuries are sometimes reflective of the clothing we wear of the shoes we wear," said Jenkins.
He said during his tenure, he has not received any formal complaints about teacher dress.
Jenkins said the district will look at the dress code policy after school starts in August. He said with board permission, he will form a committee comprised of teachers, administrators, and community members to make recommendations to the board.
