Rangely School Board sets dress code, talks math

RANGELY I The Rangely School Board met Dec. 16 to discuss changes in direction for a district dress code policy, high school math offerings and the 2013/14 audit report.

The school dress code was a hot topic at the meeting as Superintendent Matt Scoggins presented the board with the areas he wanted changed, including tank top strap widths, skirt/short length and school dance dress requirements.
After much discussion, the board agreed on the following rules; no hats during school hours, tank top straps must have a minimum width of 1-1/2 inches and skirts and shorts must be be no shorter than mid-thigh in length. The board also decided to remove the rule that forbid clothing with pictures of weapons.
“Students buy clothes from Cabela’s or Sportsman’s Warehouse that might have hunting stuff on it,” Scoggins said.
The change was made after board member Sam Tolley expressed concerns about the rule. According to Tolley a student in Grand Junction was recently sent home from school for wearing a National Rifle Association shirt, and he was concerned about something similar happening in Rangely.
The board also discussed setting standards for school dances (such as prom). The rules they considered involved girls’ dresses and included not allowing anything cut below the bra line, no stomach or sides showing and a mid-thigh length requirement.
Throughout the discussion board president Leslie Nielsen stated the importance of consistent enforcement.
“We haven’t been consistent,” he said. “All teachers need to enforce the rules to all students.”
Nielsen also encouraged the board to make sure that the staff and students are held to the same standards for dress to which the board agreed, voting to include the same dress code for staff.
As the discussion wound down, Scoggins reminded the board that the school principals can still set further guidelines for their individual schools and that the board was setting a minimum requirement.
The next topic discussed was the future of math class offerings at the high school, specifically high-level courses.
Scoggins told the board, “We want to have the most rigorous program we can in Rangely.”
Currently the high school requires four math credits in order to graduate. However, Scoggins said, an advanced student could potentially have taken all offerings by the tenth grade.
Students have the option of taking dual-enrollment courses through Colorado Northwestern Community College, but the class must have at least eight students enrolled in order to be offered.
Scoggins stated that the district is “weak at meeting the needs of kids who are STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) oriented.”
In order to address this problem Scoggins would like the district to work closer with CNCC to offer more dual-enrollment math courses.
Several board members expressed a desire to have the college courses taught at the high school so that students would not have to leave the RJSHS campus.
“We will do our best, but the benefit of the college classes is huge whether at the high school or the college,” Scoggins said.
At the end of the meeting District Finance Director Steve Kraft presented the board with the 2013/14 audit report.
The key points in the audit included a $375 budget violation in the scholarship fund and that the district’s General Fund revenue exceeded expenditures by $692,673.
The Rangely School Board will meet again Jan. 20.