Sec. 10-22.25b. School uniforms.
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Sec. 10-22.25b. School uniforms. The school board may adopt a school uniform or dress code policy that governs all or certain individual attendance centers and that is necessary to maintain the orderly process of a school function or prevent endangerment of student health or safety. A school uniform or dress code policy adopted by a school board:
(i)shall not be applied in such manner as to discipline or deny attendance to a transfer student or any other student for noncompliance with that policy during such period of time as is reasonably necessary to enable the student to acquire a school uniform or otherwise comply with the dress code policy that is in effect at the attendance center or in the district into which the student's enrollment is transferred;
(ii)shall include criteria and procedures under which the school board will accommodate the needs of or otherwise provide appropriate resources to assist a student from an indigent family in complying with an applicable school uniform or dress code policy;
(iii)shall not include or apply to hairstyles, including hairstyles historically associated with race, ethnicity, or hair texture, including, but not limited to, protective hairstyles such as braids, locks, and twists; and
(iv)shall not prohibit the right of a student to wear or accessorize the student's graduation attire with items associated with the student's cultural, ethnic, or religious identity or any other protected characteristic or category identified in subsection
(Q)of Section 1-103 of the Illinois Human Rights Act. A student whose parents or legal guardians object on religious grounds to the student's compliance with an applicable school uniform or dress code policy shall not be required to comply with that policy if the student's parents or legal guardians present to the school board a signed statement of objection detailing the grounds for the objection. This Section applies to school boards of all districts, including special charter districts and districts organized under Article 34. If a school board does not comply with the requirements and prohibitions set forth in this Section, the school district is subject to the penalty imposed pursuant to subsection
(a)of Section 2-3.25.
By no later than July 1, 2022, the State Board of Education shall make available to schools resource materials developed in consultation with stakeholders regarding hairstyles, including hairstyles historically associated with race, ethnicity, or hair texture, including, but not limited to, protective hairstyles such as braids, locks, and twists. The State Board of Education shall make the resource materials available on its Internet website.