Magnolia ISD ends its hard-line hair policy
District required short cuts for boys, nonbinary students
A small town school policy rooted in Eisenhower era values came to an end this week after months of pressure from families who are very much living in the 21st century.
Under legal pressure from students who wanted the freedom to wear their hair long, the Magnolia ISD board changed its hard-line stance Monday night, eliminating a districtwide policy that mandated short hair for boys and some nonbinary children. The district suspended students who declined to cut their hair in August, forcing some into disciplinary alternative programs or out of the district altogether.
The school board ultimately approved a settlement crafted on behalf of long-haired students and their families who said the policy was harmful, discriminatory and illegal. The district’s updated dress and grooming policy allows all students to wear their hair long, a district spokesperson said in a statement.
When confronted by parents and civil rights groups this fall, board members repeatedly declined to reconsider the policy.
Then in October, the ACLU of Texas, the ACLU Women’s Rights Project and the law firms Ahmad, Zavitsanos, Anaipakos, Alavi & Mensing P.C. and Susman Godfrey LLP sued the Magnolia ISD on behalf of six boys and one nonbinary student saying the students had experienced irreparable harm as a result of violations of Equal Protection and Title IX, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex.
Lawyers said schools unevenly enforced the rule across the district, including, for example, game day photographs showing several high school football players allowed to wear their hair long.
Chief U.S. District Judge Lee Rosenthal promptly ruled the gender-based hair policy could not be enforced while the case moved forward, finding it was likely Magnolia was violating the students’ constitutional rights.
Students and parents of students impacted by the policy asked the school board on multiple occasions to halt the policy, and on Monday night the board voted to revoke it.
“Students and families in Magnolia ISD have fought hard for this victory and can finally celebrate that the district’s dress code will no longer punish students based
solely on gender,” said attorney Brian Klosterboer, of the ACLU of Texas, which wrote nearly 500 other Texas school districts with similar dress codes prior to filing the lawsuit, notifying them they were in violation of the law if they kept them in place.
“In the wake of this decision, more school districts across the state are updating similarly outdated and unlawful policies,” he said. “We are heartened that they understand how vital it is that no school district subject students to dress codes that impose gender stereotypes.”
Klosterboer said he expects the students to file motions in the the coming days reflecting that there is no longer a difference of opinion on the matter.
Parents involved in the lawsuit said they were thrilled their children can focus on school, activities and friends rather than worrying about their haircuts.
“We started the school year off excited to start a new school,” said Danielle Miller, whose child identifies as nonbinary and uses they/them pronouns. “But by the second day of school, Tristan’s school year was derailed by a school district that took away Tristan’s freedom to express themselves.”
Miller said her family is grateful for this outcome, but “for more than the obvious reasons.”
“As a mother, I saw my child bloom and stand up for their rights, no matter how hard people pushed them down,” she said. “I was able to teach Tristan lessons that they will always remember and help them navigate through tougher situations as they get older.”
Victoria Dix said her nephew Connor, a sophomore on the tennis team at Magnolia West High School, quit attending his first year at the school when he learned about the hair policy.
“When we allowed him to grow his hair out, it severely boosted his self confidence. He opened up, he became more outgoing, his whole demeanor changed, because he had that one little thing he could control on his own.”
“So when the school told us that Connor was going to have to cut his hair, he came home completely devastated,” Dix said.
His 17-year-old brother, who wears his hair short, continued the year at Magnolia West uninterrupted, while 15-year-old Connor opted for home school rather than an alternative disciplinary program.
Connor returned to his high school campus after the federal judge issued an injunction. He resumed playing for the school tennis team, returned to his regular classes and starting to make friends.
“He has a new girlfriend,” his aunt said. “It’s a complete turnaround. He’s a regular teenager. His father and I have noticed a huge difference. He’s a lot more cheerful … his self confidence is improving. He’s having friends over to the house. … He’s thrilled.”