TUSD Board takes out rule saying students’ clothes must cover buttocks, chest, and torso

TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Tuesday night TUSD’s governing board approved a change to the district’s dress code that took out a line saying “clothing must cover the chest and torso, and must cover buttocks while standing and sitting.” Now that is not a rule in their dress code.

The district says some staff members did not feel comfortable enforcing this part of the dress code.

Some board members like Jennifer Eckstrom, who voted for the change, said the rules that say clothes must cover undergarments and students must wear shirts, pants, skirts or shirts is good enough.

KGUN9 asked Eckstrom whether students would be allowed to wear clothes like skirts that show buttocks, but still cover their undergarments.

“Most undergarments cover your butt, so that is what is going to happen. That is what is going to be enforced…as long as it’s covering your undergarments, that’s what you would wear to school,” Eckstrom said.

We also spoke with governing board member Sadie Shaw who was in favor of adding language that would’ve said clothes should be appropriate for an educational environment, but the board did not approve her motion.

Shaw said they are already seeing students come to school in bathing suit-like clothes and so she did not vote in favor of removing the language about clothes covering buttocks, torsos, and chest.

“It leaves the door open for student to indeed show those parts of their bodies, and so I think it’s really unfortunate because there’s no explicit guidelines,” Shaw said. “Students are coming to school inappropriately dressed and without strict guidelines for our staff, I think it’s only going to continue and get worse.”