Student starts hair policy petition
Boys can let their hair down and still learn, says a teenager mustering community support against the shortback-and-sides.
Taine Humphrey, 15, is calling on Feilding High School to change its policy requiring boys to have short hair, which he thinks is sexist, ‘‘really dumb, unequal and unfair’’.
He has launched a petition against the rule, challenging teachers’ argument that longer, ‘‘messy’’ hair on boys leads to distraction.
‘‘There is no distraction with having a long fringe or long hair. Why would there be? Most of the girls I know have long hair or long fringes and seem to cope with their work quite well,’’ he wrote in his letter to the board of trustees.
The petition has gained more than 1200 supporters from the school and wider Manawatu¯ community.
The school rules state male students must have short hair clear of the collar, ears and face.
Humphrey said it was frustrating as it didn’t affect students’ learning and was contradictory to the school’s supportive response to transgender and genderfluid students.
‘‘It wouldn’t make the school look bad,’’ he said, ‘‘Other schools allow it, female students are allowed it.’’
Humphrey said the school and community was ready for a change like this. ‘‘It’s 2021, this shouldn’t be a big deal.’’
He said countless students had thanked him in person for his effort.
Feilding High School principal Nathan Stewart said the rule was clear and longstanding, and any change required consultation with school stakeholders and affirmation by the board of trustees.
The school would be consulting stakeholders this year as a part of the new National Learning Education Priorities strategic plan.
‘‘We believe educating adolescents in a structured, disciplined learning environment wrapped with care provides each child the best possible chance of success,’’ he said.
High school hair policies drew national attention in 2014, when Hawke’s Bay teen Lucan Battison won a court battle against St John’s College after being suspended for his hair length.
The Wellington High Court ruled that because Battison put his hair in a bun, he had followed his school’s requirement for ‘‘off the collar and out of the eyes’’. Feilding High School rules clearly require hair to be cut short on boys. This is not the first time amale student has challenged hair rules at the school.
In 2014, a boy was stood down for his haircut. At the time, Ministry of Education spokeswoman Katrina Casey said long hair was not suitable grounds to stand down or suspend a student.
Casey, who is now deputy secretary for Sector Enablement and Support within the Ministry of Education, said school boards have the authority to set rules.