Article

While students have official codes to follow, professional staffs don't.

Monday, September 25, 2006 • By MICHELLE PITTMAN • The Express-Times

With so much talk about what students are wearing these days, it's only natural the same scrutiny would apply to teachers.

While Easton Area School District was in the thick of student dress code discussions over the summer, some parents came forward to question what district professionals are wearing to school. But Superintendent Dennis Riker said a teacher dress code is not something he or the school board is considering.

"We haven't had any problems with it," he said. "We seriously encourage teachers to dress appropriately and professionally. The teachers union leadership has done the same thing. There is contract language that addresses dress, but we don't go into specific items the way we do with students. I don't think we need to at this point."

Students have a code

The district adopted a 19-point student dress code this year. It applies to all elementary, middle and high school students.

Easton Area's professional attire policy, like many others across the state, simply states teachers should present an image of dignity and authority, said Scott K. Shewell, spokesman for the Pennsylvania School Boards Association. The policy says district administration and professionals should work together to agree upon appropriate attire.

"It's hard to pinpoint items that are problems. We provide a very general policy to districts who sign up for that service," Shewell said. "We do so only at the district's request, and it's very general in nature. They can feel free to alter it in whatever way they see fit."

But to Shewell's knowledge, no district has outlawed specific items, unlike the approach to student dress codes that clearly defines what is and isn't allowed.

"I think our guidelines are pretty effective," he said. "You'd expect a professional to be clean and well-groomed and to know what to wear to work."

Rare for teacher code in N.J.

From 1998 to 2003, the county and the college were embroiled in fierce lawsuits over expansion funding, which went to the state Supreme Court. The court ruled the college's Board of School Estimate could not force the county to pay for an expansion.

After Austin became president in 2003, the school tried to meet changing student needs by expanding programs beyond its traditional liberal arts core.

Austin said the nursing and law enforcement programs are the hot ones bringing in students.

"In this particular region, law enforcement is a very desired program," he said. "If you look at everything that happened after 9/11, this field has gotten a lot of media attention and students are responding."

Laurel Attanasio, the college's director of enrollment management, said there has been a 10 percent increase in full-time enrollment for this year, although part-time enrollment fell by 7 percent.

"The economy is doing better and part-timers don't usually think about going back to school unless they really need more skills," she said.

Austin said gas prices also play a role in the decline.

"Higher education institutions compete against everything in a person's life. For a person working a full-time job and trying to make ends meet, gas prices affect their bottom line," he said. "Over a year it may be a couple hundred dollars but that is the price of our tuition."

Districts trust teachers' style sense

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