A lawsuit over a local charter school’s dress code could soon be in the hands of the US Supreme Court.
Roger Bacon Academy announced in its summer newsletter to parents that it will appeal a decision that its dress code violates Title IX to the Supreme Court after its Board of Trustees voted unanimously in favor.
“While the majority decision itself is troubling — and wrong and wrong, in our opinion — the potential consequence explained in the dissent is even more troubling,” the school’s owner, Baker Mitchell, wrote in the June 27 newsletter.
In 2016, families of three students filed a lawsuit against one of Mitchell’s schools, Charter Day School in Leland, over its dress code, which requires female students to wear skirts.
The families said the dress code discriminates against girls because wearing a skirt is more uncomfortable than wearing pants and makes it difficult to participate in some school activities.
After several verdicts, which were later appealed, a full panel of the US Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals sided with the families. In June, the court ruled 10-6 that the dress code violates Title IX, a federal law protecting students in public schools from gender discrimination.
But Mitchell said the ruling could change the landscape of charter schools. He said in the newsletter he believes this undermines the foundation charter on which schools are founded and deprives parents of the right to choose their children’s education.
Mitchell said he believes the ruling creates a slippery slope and, in the future, courts could allow states to regulate what is taught in charter schools and how.
“Charter schools will virtually disappear,” Mitchell wrote.
The plaintiffs respond:The end of a charter school’s requirement that girls wear skirts, right?
US Court of Appeals:The Leland Charter School’s dress code, which requires only skirts, is unconstitutional
School defends dress code:Leland Charter School Defends Gender-Specific Dress Code Before US Circuit Court of Appeals
Charter schools vary from state to state, but are typically viewed as public schools owned and operated by independent organizations such as Mitchell’s Roger Bacon Academy, Inc.
Charter schools have similarities to private schools, but because they are taxpayer-funded, they must accept any student who wishes to enroll. However, they are allowed to administer their own rules and regulations as long as they can demonstrate positive academic results among students and financial stability.
Roger Bacon Academy has four charter schools that meet high expectations, and students often achieve higher test scores than traditional public schools.
The appeals court said in its decision that while charter schools are not traditional public schools, they still receive federal funding and are therefore subject to federal regulations such as Title IX.
Experts say dress codes can and do discriminate based on gender, and this ruling proves it. Wendy Murphy, an attorney and associate professor at New England Law Boston, said while parents can choose whether to send students to charter schools, that’s not the point of the ruling: Regardless of whether a school receives federal funding, it can’t discriminate based on it Sex.
“The statute itself is very simple,” Murphy said. “You can’t discriminate based on gender, period.”
The school had previously defended its dress code, arguing that it encourages chivalry and that women are “fragile vessels” that men should “care for and honor”.
For now, Charter Day School has changed their dress code to allow girls to wear pants to school. This is also reflected in Roger Bacon Academy’s three other schools: Douglass Academy in Wilmington, South Brunswick Charter School in Southport and Columbus Charter School in Whiteville.
University of Richmond law professor Carl Tobias, who specializes in selecting federal judges, said he doesn’t expect the Supreme Court to take up the case, but he may have potential given the interest in the issue.
Mitchell told parents in the newsletter he appreciates the continued support and encouragement from the school community.
“This is not the end of our struggle to remain independent and different,” he said.
Reporter Sydney Hoover can be reached at 910-343-2339 or shoover@gannett.com.