Dress-code vote sparks family feuds

PROVO — The dress-code proposal at Dixon Middle School is pitting some parents against their children.

Provo mom Chris Coffman doesn't want to say how she is voting — not in front of her 13-year-old daughter, anyway.

"I'm going to keep my vote silent to preserve peace at home," Coffman said. "But that tells you how I'm voting."

Seventh-grader Laura Coffman, like many of her classmates, is adamantly against the proposal. "I don't want it," she said.

The proposed dress code requires students to wear collared shirts, but they can wear a plain T-shirt underneath for the layered look. They can wear khaki, brown, green, navy or black pants.

Shorts or skirts below the knee are allowed. No logos or decals are permitted. Earrings are the only piercings allowed but other safe, moderate jewelry is OK.

Parents of seventh-graders voted via ballot when they attended parent/ teacher conferences Thursday afternoon at the school, 750 W. 200 North, Provo.

Parents of sixth-graders voted last week after seeing students model the proposed standard attire in a fashion show. Girls sported layers of T-shirts and blouses with pants. Boys showed off striped polo shirts and khaki shorts with pockets.

Many students remain unconvinced. Clad in jeans and a Brigham Young University logo T-shirt, Tyler Osborn, 12, who will be a seventh-grader at Dixon Middle this fall, said, "The collared shirts just wouldn't work for me. I have none in my possession."

More parents may vote today at the school's Spring Fiesta.

Parents can even call in their vote to the school. All voters must submit their address and name of their child. "We want all the parents to have their voices heard," said Taran Chun, Dixon Middle assistant principal.

Administrators plan to tally the votes and announce the decision early next week. The school's dress standard committee states 80 percent parental support is needed for the proposal to pass, said Dixon Middle principal Rosanna Ungerman.

Meanwhile, the debates ensue, making for some interesting dinnertime conversations between parents and teens.

Dad Joel Salazar says he is voting for the proposal. His seventh-grade daughter, Rosa, 13, isn't happy. "I don't think we should have it because then we couldn't wear what we want," she said. Rosa was wearing jeans and a pink decal T-shirt that touted a seagull and read "Newport Beach."