The supreme court of US refused to hear a case on dress code by a school in North Carolina. Turning away an appeal by Charter Day School Inc, the justices stayed with a lower court's decision that the dress code discriminated against students based on gender and also violating the 14th Amendment of US constitution which promises its citizen of equal protection under the law.
A student uniform policy that its founder explained is aimed at treating women like "fragile vessels."
Charter schools in North Carolina are tuition-free, open to attendance by all, and receive state funding for each student. They are run by private, nonprofit corporations rather than a public school district. Under school policy, boys may wear pants or shorts.
At issue in the case was whether Charter Day School in the southeastern North Carolina town of Leland, which offers a "traditional-values-based education" to students from kindergarten to Grade 8, was subject to the Constitution's equal protection provision when it enforced the skirt policy.
The school said its uniform policy was designed to foster classroom discipline and "mutual respect between boys and girls."
The school's founder, Baker Mitchell, told parents that the policy was aimed at preserving chivalry, with women "regarded as a fragile vessel that men are supposed to take care of and honor," according to the court.
The petitioner alleged that the skirts requirement was rooted in gender stereotypes, violating the 14th Amendment.
"Girls at public charter schools have the same constitutional rights as their peers at other public schools - including the freedom to wear pants. We will continue to fight for all girls to learn in safe and equal schools," said Ria Tabacco Mar, an attorney who represented students and their parents.
The founder, Mitchell expressed his disappointment after court's decision. He warned of ripple effects for charter schools, "threatening their autonomy, subjecting them to the same rules, regulations and political machinations that have crippled government-run school systems, and worst of all, leaving many low-income parents and students with no option other than poorly performing district schools." As quoted by reuters.
The Richmond, Virginia-based 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in 2022 ruled that charter schools in North Carolina are state actors because they are publicly funded, their employees are considered public school employees and the state has delegated to them a duty to educate students. The 4th Circuit then found Charter Day School's dress code unconstitutional.
The skirt requirement telegraphs to children that female students are fragile and warrant different treatment than males - "stereotypes with potentially devastating consequences for young girls," the 4th Circuit ruling stated.
In its appeal, the school said the 4th Circuit's ruling undermined charter schools by treating "private operators as the constitutional equivalent of government-run schools, squelching innovation and restricting parental choice."
(With inputs from agencies)
