Lisa Downey address the Board of Education at its July meeting.
Lisa Downey address the Board of Education at its July meeting.
Are school uniforms really worth it? According to one Bayonne mom, the answer is no.
The conversation, which comes up nearly annually, was prompted at the July meeting of the Bayonne Board of Education by resident and parent Lisa Downey, who is calling for a change in the district’s uniform policy.
Downey wrote multiple letters to the board before following up during the public portion of the July meeting. Downey wants parents to be able to spend their money on uniforms at stores that they choose, possibly saving money in the process, and not be forced to shop for uniforms at specific stores.
“So many people are faced with financial challenges,” Downey said. “The school is even providing free lunch to make sure people are fed. So I don’t really get how it’s reasonable then to expect those same families to be paying premium prices at these uniform stores. Some families can only afford one shirt for their kids. These kids go to school in unfortunately, dirty, torn, worn out, shirts. It’s two sets of clothing for families that we shouldn’t have to do.”
Downey said she was just looking to open a discussion, considering the number of other parents she’s heard from who are facing this issue.
“It’s not an isolated incident,” Downey said. “It’s not just a few people who want to see changes.”
Parent concerns
Board President Maria Valado deferred the question to Superintendent of Schools John Niesz, as the enforcement of uniforms “is under his domain.”
Niesz asked to clarify if the “complaint” was that the uniforms were too expensive. Downey reiterated that yes, it was about the cost, but added that it was also about principle.
“It’s not a complaint, it’s a concern,” Downey said. “Number one, it’s a free public school education. So this should be about education, not what the kids are wearing. We should be encouraging kids to express themselves through the way they look, not telling them they are only going to be accepted if they look like everyone else or if they dress like everyone else. We should be embracing their individuality, not telling them you have to be the same.”
Downey continued: “As for the cost, whether or not people can afford to shop in the uniform stores, I don’t know where the Board of Education gets the right actually to tell us where we need to shop in order to send our kids to a public school.”
Niesz simply responded with an “okay.”
Seeking other vendors
Valado then addressed the issue herself.
“We will review your concerns as a board and see if there are alternative uniform stores we could work with,” Valado said. “We will open up the discussion and see what we can do to adjust.”
Valado said that Niesz will send a letter out to the community letting parents know what uniform stores the district will be working with and what uniforms the students will have to wear.
Trustee David “Doc” Watson then addressed Downey’s concerns about student individuality.
“I went to school when there were no uniforms, and the problem was the children that couldn’t afford expensive [Nike] Air Jordans and couldn’t dress in the expensive stylish look, they were bullied,” Watson said. “So the pressure of being individual when it comes to your attire at school became a problem. And that’s why uniforms came into being in Bayonne years ago. So that’s something you might want to consider.”
Downey was quick to point out that the bullying still exists today.
“The kids that can afford them are still wearing Air Jordans, whereas the other kids who can’t, aren’t,” Downey said. “Kids are still being bullied unfortunately.”
The conversation was then cut off by Board Secretary Gary Maita, saying Downey had exceeded her three minutes allotted to speak.
Following that, Valado reiterated: “We will have a discussion and we will then notify parents of what other vendors we could add to adjust to the cost.”
Conversation continues
Following the meeting, the conversation continued online on social media. While many agreed with Downey, many others said that it was cheaper to buy the uniforms than to continuously buy new clothes for their kids throughout the year.
Other opponents of nixing uniforms in the district also cited the need to address issues they deemed more important than getting rid of uniforms. Some agreed with Watson, that the uniforms tackled the bullying issue, while others thought bullies will exist regardless of uniforms.
Downey said that her personal preference is to get rid of uniforms, but at the minimum she wants the district to allow parents to purchase uniforms at the store they prefer.
More on the topic may be announced at the next Board of Education meeting or through a letter from the superintendent. For more information, go to bboed.org.
For updates on this and other stories, check www.hudsonreporter.com and follow us on Twitter @hudson_reporter. Daniel Israel can be reached at disrael@hudsonreporter.com.
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