OTTAWA COUNTY, Mich. — A sophomore at Jenison High School is taking a stand against the school dress code, which she says unfairly targets girls over boys.
14-year-old Kimberly Smallegan said she's had more than one run-in with the school dress code.
"I’ve been dress coded multiple times in the high school. I get called down to the office, brought out of class because of what I’m wearing," she said.
Smallegan's most recent infraction came this school year, when she was disciplined for coming to school in a crop top, which she said showed minimal skin.
"They didn’t care about the shoulders, but that’s in their rule book too. They were saying that my stomach was showing too much and that it was distracting," Smallegan recalled, "...I was called out right in front of my friend. I was yelled at. It was not nice."
Smallegan took her frustrations online, starting a campaign that encouraged more conversation around the Jenison Public Schools dress code. The petition has over 900 signatures to relax the code's rules. Smallegan's original goal was 500.
"I’ve gotten lots of messages saying thanks for creating this," Smallegan said.
A large portion of the original petition mentioned the disparities between the way male and female students are policed at the school by the dress code.
"I remember one time in the 6th grad we were in health class... and the teacher was saying that it was something in the male brain that made shoulders distracting and that we need to cover ourselves up and be modest," Smallegan recalled, "It’s an unfair pressure because people shouldn’t have to dress a certain way to accommodate other people. I should be able to wear what I want, and honestly it’s not inappropriate. These people aren’t even offended by it. It’s more distracting to the teachers than anything, and they should stop sexualizing minors."
However, the movement comes with pushback from other community members. The teen says some adults have messaged her insults.
"It's like older women. They're all like 'No that's inappropriate. God still loves you.' Pushing religion, saying that I’m sinning, calling me a whore," she said, "...They have freedom of speech too. I respect their opinion I just don’t agree with them."
Other community members have taken different approaches to keep the dress code, one person starting a petition of their own.
Jenison Public Schools told 13 ON YOUR SIDE in a statement, "Jenison High School encourages our students to dress for success while promoting a positive learning environment."
However, Smallegan said she feels the dress code prohibits some students from effectively learning.
"I got to school to learn. If we get pulled out of the classroom we’re not learning. We’re missing out of opportunities in the classroom to thrive," she explained.
Smallegan said she doesn't want to take down the school or the dress code as a whole, but rather change the rules within it to create a more equal experience.
"I don’t want to get ride of it completely because people need boundaries, but I think we need at least an inch and a half of stomach and shoulders," she said, "I just want to change the rule. Times have changed."
Smallegan has a new goal of 1,000 signatures and plans to bring the petition to Jenison Public School officials.
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