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Uniform Guidelines

All students attending University School of Jackson are expected to be in accordance with the Dress Code on a daily basis. Our policy on school uniforms is based on the notion that school uniforms:
• Promote a sense of pride in the school.
• Engender a sense of community and belonging towards the school.
• Are practical and smart.
• Prevent students from coming to school in fashion clothes that could be distracting in class.
• Make children feel equal to their peers in terms of appearance.
• Are regarded as suitable wear for school and good value for money by most parents.

We ask all USJ parents to support the school uniform policy. We believe that parents have a duty to send their children to school correctly dressed and ready for their daily schoolwork. One of the responsibilities of parents is to ensure that their child has the correct uniform, and that it is clean and in good repair. At the discretion of the Division Director, students who are out of uniform in an emergency may be excused without penalty.

Besides the stated uniform policy, other points to consider involving daily attire/appearance are the following:

• Extreme coloring of hair and unconventional hairstyles are not acceptable, and, as such, break school rules.
• Boys must be clean-shaven daily, and hair should not be worn below the eyebrows or collar.
• Earrings for male students are unacceptable.
• Tattoos are unacceptable.

Dress Code standards

• Skirts can be no more than three inches above the knee. Skirts must have hems.
• All clothing should be worn properly and size appropriate.
• Shirt tails are to be tucked in at all times. The only exception is the girl’s overblouse and t-shirts and sweatshirts worn by Cubs to first grade.
• A black or brown belt must be worn with pants or shorts designed with belt loops.
• Non-USJ outerwear may be worn outside, but should be placed in the student’s locker upon arrival at school.
• Students may not wear hats, bandannas, scarves, or other headwear inside the building.
• Socks must be a solid color – navy, white, brown, red, or flesh-tone.
• Undershirt sleeves must be shorter than uniform shirtsleeves.
• No accessories should be attached to clothing. Watches, bracelets, necklaces, and earrings should be appropriate and non-distracting.

Shoe Policy for Grades 6-12

• Students may wear brown, navy, black, burgundy, or red closed-toe shoes.
• No heel can be higher than two inches.
• Shoes must have original laces.
• Appropriate dress or leather sandals will be allowed up to fall break or after spring break.
• Casual style boots, such as hiking or cowboy boots, may be worn only with pants. Girls can wear knee boots with skirts or skorts if they meet the color and heel-height restrictions.
• Students cannot wear flip-flops, any shoe with a toe-piece, athletic shoes, or sport sandals.

Grade 6-8 addition to Shoe Policy

Middle School students also may wear white, black, or gray athletic shoes.

Cubs- 5th Grade Shoe Policy

Shoes must be clean and in good repair. Students may wear brown, blue, black, burgundy, and red closed-toe shoes. They also may wear athletic shoes. Students cannot wear sandals, flip-flops, or any shoe that has an open toe. Comfortable, playground-worthy shoes are suggested.

Uniform Violations

The following is a progressive disciplinary plan for Middle and Upper School students who are considered non-compliant with the Dress Code Policy and who have not been granted an exemption.
• 1st Offense: Phone call to parent/guardian to bring correct clothing, written warning.
• 2nd Offense: Phone call to parent/guardian to bring correct clothing, after-school detention. (Loss of recess time in Lower School)
• 3rd Offense: Phone call to parent/guardian to bring correct clothing, after school detention – multiple days. (Loss of recess time in Lower School)
• 4th Offense: Phone call to parent/guardian to bring correct clothing, in-school suspension.
• 5th Offense: Phone call to parent/guardian to bring correct clothing, home suspension.

Division Directors may declare spirit days and allow students to wear school spirit shirts, or dress-up days, or allow students to wear other uniforms, such as Boy Scouts, Girls Scouts, band, chorus, athletic teams, etc.

Questions concerning uniforms should be directed to the Head of School or Division Directors.

Cell phone policy

The evolving sophistication of cellular phones has made it increasingly difficult for teachers to monitor the presence and/or misuse of this technology in a classroom setting. Sharing information through mechanisms available on cellular phones has created the potential for situations which are not acceptable in an academic environment.

Therefore, from an academic perspective, it is no longer acceptable for Middle and Upper School students to have a cellular phone in the building during normal school hours (8 a.m.-3 p.m.).

Failure to follow the above policy will result in the following:

First Offense: The cell phone is held by an administrator and must be retrieved by a parent.

Second Offense: The cell phone is held for one week by an administrator, the student is assigned an after school detention, and the phone must be retrieved by a parent.

Third Offense: The cell phone is held for two weeks by an administrator, the student is assigned an In School Suspension, and the phone must be retrieved by a parent.

Further violations of this policy will result in a parent/administrator conference and more severe disciplinary consequences for the student.