Heya! I been barefooting at school for the past 2 weeks. Was told I had to wear shoes. First I told him it was not in the student handbook. The new really bitchy prinicple came in. I asked her why I had to. She responded with because I said so. Asked her for a real reason, and that "I told you so" was not a real answer. She went on about the health hand book and insurence. Where are the loopholes in this system? I know they are. Tomorrow I begin with sole-less shoes. If it helps I am 19, in Ontario Canada and the school let me come back after a semester off. What can I do to continue to be barefoot? http://windsor.windsorhs.schoolfusi...a78f5a2518&t=b84e75148e47f82a0947903a13831cf5
Kind of a bummer. Could you possibly wear flip flops to school and kick them off when sitting? Good luck with the soleless shoes, let us know if that works out or not. Send us a picture of those if you can.
I'm going to approach it like a professional. Calling the school board tonight and have them send me papers about their "contracts" and where it says I can't be barefoot and why, with good, legal reason. As for shoes, for now I'm going to fashion a pair of soles out of very thin pleather. This school has screwed me over alot. I will not lay back this time. Never compromise who you are and what you believe in.
lol, when Im in school i see these corny girls wearing flip flops, they are not protecting their feet in anyway. Also when there is a assignment in forensics to go outside, or in class where there are needles, razors, glass. ect.. they are not prepared to participate.. So its a fail. But when there isnt anything to do, I take off my shoes in the class too.. I dont see it being a problem.. Good luck to you..
Thank you. I will update you all tomorrow. Now I am off to make sole out of pleather and call them shoes. haha
It's not going to be easy. You'll be able to tell them it has nothing to do with health as there aren't any health laws about it. If they want real evidence you can always write to your local health authority and get a statement from them with their official letter head on it. You can also do away with the liability issue by giving them a waiver with your signature on it. Unfortunately they can still impose any appearance rules they like if they're a private institution. They'd be well within their rights to insist that everyone wears a pink hat if they want to, if they are privately run. So while they won't be able to hide behind any bollocks that makes it look like their hands are tied, or pretend that they're not the bad guys, they can still BE the bad guys if they want to be. Unless of course it's a state school. In which case they're not allowed to impose any dress or uniform rules for people over a certain age.
I plan to call the school board, but I think they are closed for the night. Tomorrow I bring papers with all the health benefits and a a letter to the principle. She was quite rude to me.
I checked the Student Handbook in the link you provided, sadly, there's a clause in page 9, STUDENT DRESS CODE section, that says: "Shoes must be worn at all times. Flip flops are not desirable footwear for school and students are discouraged from wearing them to school." I think the only option would be wear some kind of soleless shoes. If flip flops are discouraged, soleless sandals are not an option. You could get some cheap shoes and remove the sole, so that the upper part of your foot is covered and the sole is in contact with the ground. That's the only idea I have, but they could counterattack by saying that a shoe without a sole is not a shoe... Merriam Webster's online dictionary defines shoe as: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shoe 1 a: an outer covering for the human foot typically having a thick or stiff sole with an attached heel and an upper part of lighter material (as leather) b: a metal plate or rim for the hoof of an animal And of course nailing a "shoe" as in option b: is not possible at all Good luck! Keep us informed. The worst thing is that they force you to wear shoes at school, but your feet can be free in your free time.
Hello DG. You're one of the few people I can remember clearly from these boards. Have you tried going barefoot yourself yet, or do you still prefer to encourage young ladies to do it for you while you watch comfortably in your shoes. Erm, incidentally - if that's the wording of the school dress code, then perhaps you could get some really small shoes (toddlers' shoes or something) and make them into a piece of jewellery to wear around your wrist or something. Then you're wearing shoes. It doesn't say the words "on your feet" anywhere. I had the same trouble when I was at school - not with shoes as I always wore shoes to school as a very peer-pressure conscious adolescent, but with my beard. I wasn't allowed it, even in sixth form. It was a rule on appearance. I was told that if I could present a case where my religion required it I'd be allowed the beard, but otherwise no. They put it down to a rule on appearance, which I couldn't find specifically in the school rules, but I did find a cop-out rule in there that said that senior members of staff were entitled to impose appearance rules whenever they saw fit. Ironically there was a boy there (still a good friend of mine) who had a beard and no-one objected purely because he was Indian. Even though he had short hair and didn't wear a turban, everyone just assumed his beard was for religious reasons. Yet he's a Hindu, not a Sikh. Shows how racial prejudice can work in people's favour sometimes. The point of this though is that you MIGHT be able to get around the problem (if all else fails) by claiming that it's a manifestation of your religious beliefs. Whether that means starting a religion, or looking up an appropriate one and telling the school you've joined it (there are some barefoot orders of nuns out there I think, but the school would probably make you follow it up by doing all the other things such nuns do so it's probably not worth the effort).
I've got a myriad of feelings on this topic. All I can do is give you my perspective. I went to an all-boys Catholic high school. We wore dress slacks, dress shirts, sport coats, ties, and yes - dress shoes and socks (no sandals or sneakers allowed). No facial hair was allowed, and haircuts had to be relatively short - for the 1970's (be above the bottom of your ears, out of your eyes, above the bottom of the collar in the back - and the catch all - "no unusual hair styles allowed"). The atmosphere was all about learning - and we learned alright! Despite how militaristic it sounds, it was also a good experience. We had fun. The instructors were like the students - joking, laughing, but teaching - and doing a damn good job of it! If you "crossed the line" you knew about it, but we all knew the rules and had a good time nonetheless. During my senior year, the "Director of Students" came into one of our classes for an open and honest discussion about our four years at the school. One student chirped up that when he went off to college he was going to grow a beard, wear shorts or jeans, t-shirts, and go barefoot to class. The Director of Students just laughed. He said that one could always tell the students on a college campus who came from our high school - they were the grungiest ones to be found! It was all about rebelling against the system In retrospect, I can't say I minded the dress code. The "all boys" part was a bit of a bummer. We came out pretty socially backward when it came to girls. Eventually, I "swallowed my balls," dropped my pride, and started trying to meet girls on campus. I made an ass out of myself, but eventually I learned and had several steady girlfriends before getting married. Anyhow, that's my perspective on this topic for what it's worth.
Please let us know how you get on; and the fact that you are 19 and an adult should count for something as well!
The dress code is really interesting. It does state that shoes must be worn at all times. It also states that students who violate the dress code will be asked to wear their shirt inside out. I know what they mean, but their words say something different. But, I do wonder if you could go barefoot if you agree to wear a shirt inside out. <GRIN> Incidently, I'm a teacher and am usually barefoot at my school. Hugz Bobby
