Teen growing his hair for sick sister withdraws from Texas school when told to get haircut

[TexasTowelie]

42. I will agree with you that changing schools is detrimental.

My two oldest sisters had to move frequently and didn't form as many friendships compared to my youngest sister, my brother, or myself who didn't have to move frequently.

I also agree that homeschooling does not accomplish much if the parents do not have a sufficient educational background. I was a strong academic student and could provide instruction in most courses, but I would be horrible if I tried to provide instruction in foreign languages for example.

As far as our disagreement on hair length, I do think that students should realize that when they enter employment that their employers will also have dress codes. A little bit of conformity and discipline isn't going to damage the students so it will probably benefit them if they are exposed to that at an earlier age instead of waiting until they are adults. They will have plenty of opportunities later in life to be a revolutionary.

If there was a religious or cultural reason for a male student to have long hair, then I would agree that the student has a legitimate grievance. However, I suspect that in this instance it is more of a situation where the student is trying to see what he can get away with. If the school administrators permit this one student to be an exception to the rules, then they will set a precedent and other students will attempt to break other rules. It's the slippery slope argument so I can understand why the administrators do not want to be lax about the rules, disrupt discipline, and disrupt the learning environment.