Teacher raises concern over school district tattoo ban

[The Straight Story]

Teacher raises concern over school district tattoo ban


OGDEN -- At least one teacher is crying foul over a new Ogden School District dress code that bans visible tattoos.

Mark Johnson has worked at Ogden High School for 15 years and tells the Standard-Examiner he's never had a complaint. Instead, he says his tattoos -- one of which is a tribute on his right forearm to his wife and children -- are conversation starters and get his students to think.

"Covering up, to me, is burying and keeping the stigma of tattooed people alive," Johnson told the paper.

Johnson says he has covered up since a disciplinary action was launched against him. Efforts by KSL to reach Johnson Monday morning were unsuccessful.

"The dress code that the Ogden School District has implemented has to do with raising the bar of professional dress," district spokeswoman Donna Corby told KSL Newsradio Monday.

http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=9934567

[vadawg]

1. just do what i do wear a long sleeved shirt and a turtle neck

lots of professionals have to cover up as part of their job and whether he or i like it a lot of people dont like tattoos...

[Ms. Toad]

3. Turtlenecks are apparently banned, for men, at least.

>>Among the rules, men must wear collared shirts.<<

I guess that begs the question - what if you are male, have a neck tattoo, and have short hair?

[vadawg]

5. yeah we wear turtle necks with long sleeves due to the tattoos part

i guess the short answer is dont have tattoos, no idea what the remedy would be otherwise.. thing i hate the most is the ugly tattoos, i got no idea how drunk the people where when they got it but some are just awful...

[Silent3]

14. For me "the ugly tattoos" is about 98% of them. :)

Most of them look like things bored 12 year-old boys would scribble in their notebooks while not paying attention in class. Tattoos that rise above the level of trite, hackneyed kitsch are a rare thing.

[Ms. Toad]

2. Might have a bit more of an argument against the gender specific

portions of the code: >>Among the rules, men must wear collared shirts.<<

[LWolf]

9. In my previous district, ALL employees had to wear collars.

I bought a selection of collared vests so that I could continue to wear shirts and sweaters without collars.

[Ms. Toad]

11. That at least addresses the gender discrmination issue. n/t

[LWolf]

15. If not the realities of "professional dress" nazis.

I'm not advocating sloppiness, but the reality is that we need to be able to wear clothing that suits what we do all day.

When I taught primary students, I spent a lot of time on the floor in my room. Teaching any grade, I spend time lifting, carrying, and climbing to reach things.

Teaching any grade, I spend time outdoors, supervising and sometimes teaching outdoor activities.

I use paint, glue, and other messy substances.

I need clothes that are not restrictive; that will move freely with me for whatever physical activity I have to do. I need clothes that wash easily, that don't require dry-cleaning. I need shoes that allow me to be on my feet most of the day, often outside, that can handle weather and running if necessary.

I like clothing with lots of pockets, since I'm on the move and need places to put stuff that is moving with me.

As a professional, I need clothing that is FUNCTIONAL. Collars have nothing to do with it.

[Ms. Toad]

16. And as an elementary student had to walk a mile to school

in blizzards (and who also liked to hang upside down on the monkey bars at recess) the student dress code that mandated that girls wear dresses wasn't terrible practical, either.

[LWolf]

18. I broke my collar bone when I was 6

because I was hanging upside down on the monkey bars and a boy climbed up to the top to look down and announce that he could see my underwear. I let go, grabbed my skirt, and promptly fell off.

By the time I got to 6th grade, we were allowed to wear pants on Fridays only, and in middle school we were allowed to wear pants on any day. I never wore a dress to school again until 9th grade graduation.

[Ms. Toad]

19. Sounds like we grew up in the same era.

We got to wear pants by the time I got to high school.

[LWolf]

21. I was born in 1960.

I'm a grandmother now, and I still don't wear dresses unless I can't find a way out of it.

[Ms. Toad]

24. Same era - but you're (relatively speaking) just a baby...

I was born in '56.

[LWolf]

25. heh.

I don't mind being the younger every once in awhile. ;)

[galileoreloaded]

20. Well, as a boy, I got sent home EVERY time I wore a dress..

and this was in the 90's!!! God damned double standard if you ask me!

[Ms. Toad]

23. You won't get any argument from me. n/t

[Manifestor_of_Light]

26. I hate dresses. Don't get me started on pantyhose, a commie plot.

I graduated from high school in 1972.

Couldn't wear pants to school ever, even when it was cold and we were freezing our butts off. This was in the days of the miniskirt. They tried to figure out how to ban long dresses :wtf:
but couldn't. I had one long dress my aunt gave me that I wore when it was cold.

Twelve years of having to wear a dress to school cured me. When I got to college it was t shirts, hiphugger blue jeans, and long hippy dippy hair. My mother was absolutely FURIOUS with me for not being "feminine" according to her standards (read Joan Crawford 1940s). And she wanted me to wear makeup and dress like a doll in high school. I started wearing makeup in high school but couldn't get a date, because I was smart. After that I decided that wearing makeup to attract boys was a bunch of BS.

I was 17 when I hit college and finally had dates. And she was really furious because I got plenty of dates, in jeans and t shirts. I dated the smartest guys on the campus, lots of them. They all majored in computer science, math, architecture, physics, engineering.....Nerds need love too!! Boy are they neglected!


This is what I looked like then, wearing contacts:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/20612500@N02/2013331351/

[donco6]

4. How are high school kids getting tattoos?

Can their parents sign for them? I thought there was an age limit.

It hasn't been a problem around here.

[jmowreader]

6. This is a dress code for staff members

[donco6]

7. Oh, oops.

Teacher neck tats. Hmmm.

[Ms. Toad]

12. My daughter had one (female) with one

her last year in high school - as well as a few odd piercings. In our relatively conservative district, it was amusing.

[Statistical]

8. OH NOES. I Guess they aren't going to accept her application then...

"What do you mean I didn't get the job? I was so looking forward to working in the Ogden School District"

[jmowreader]

17. If you're going to do some shit like that, it's best to go all the way

What she needs to do now is dye the hair on one side of her head pink, on the other side purple, put a green stripe down the middle of it, get a septum piercing, start wearing extremely heavy eye makeup, and learn punk drumming.

[Rebubula]

10. As a professional...

...with MANY Tattoos...I have no problem with this.

I keep all of my art above short-sleeve line for professional and Grandparent reasons....

[Ms. Toad]

13. That's the advice I'm giving my daughter.

I'd rather she didn't - but if she decides to have tattoos, she needs to keep them where they can be easily hidden when she needs to put on a professional appearance. The grandparents will live - they already have a tattooed daughter, former son-in-law and granddaughter.

[Sgent]

22. Professionals

cover their tattoos. Many doctors where a shirt, tie, and coat (lab coat) to work -- not necessarily the most comfortable. I would never expect to see a tattoo on a lawyer or accountant as a client.