Second Hamilton school principal apologizes for dress code 'conversation' - TheSpec.com

Just one week after Waterdown high school students staged a walkout over their principal’s dress code comments, the principal of a second Hamilton school is apologizing for a similar gaffe.

On Sunday, Dundas Central Elementary School principal Laura Bartkiw sent a letter to parents apologizing for “a conversation about appropriate dress that treated male and female students differently, while alienating those with non-binary identities.”

“We also apologize for implying that the way girls dress could be a factor in unwanted male attention,” reads the letter. “We caused harm. We are working to address it and ensure it does not happen again.”

It’s unclear what exactly occurred during the Friday “conversation.”

The letter goes on to say students “have the right to express themselves through clothing.” It acknowledges that dress codes have historically “unfairly targeted women and have stifled the identity of Two Spirit and LGBTQIA+ communities.”

Last Tuesday, in the wake of the Waterdown District High School students’ 200-person protest, the Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board announced its student trustees would be putting forward a motion asking the board to review its “appropriate dress” guidelines. That motion is expected to come before the board of trustees Oct. 18 during a board meeting.

Students at Waterdown District High School wore pyjamas to school last Wednesday to protest their school dress code. They are getting support from Miranda Jurilj, public education coordinator at SACHA.Cathie Coward/The Hamilton Spectator

“Reviewing dated dress code guidelines, whether at the school or board level, is a worthwhile task,” Bartkiw said in her letter. “This will involve new learning for staff as well as students.”

Over at Waterdown, principal Theresa Sgambato apologized for her comments — which students say were broadcast over the public announcement system and reminded students to not wear crop tops or tank tops — the same day she made them, on Oct. 7.

The high school was already reeling from news police were investigating “historical” allegations of sexual assault connected to the school. Students felt Sgambato was victim blaming.

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Second Hamilton school principal apologizes for dress code 'conversation' - TheSpec.com
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