Committee To Examine School Policy On Hair

I A special committee combosed of faculty students, adrninistration, and Parent-TeachIr Organization representatives Ivill be appointed this week to pe-examine from a "community nerspective" the dress and grooming policies at Ann Arbor (High School, Pioneer High School Principal Theodore R. Rokicki announced today. [ The present grooming rules - which led to the suspension of three male students and a threatened student walkout last weck - will be suspended while the policies are being re-considered. This means the three students suspended for violating the grooming rules will be reajmitted to their classes during the interim. Two of the three boys will be permitted to return to their classes tomorrow morning. A third boy, who has one more day of suspension to serve because of the distribution of unauthorized literature on the school grounds, will be re-admitted to school Wednesday morning. The students were suspended last Monday for violating the grooming policy by wearing iiair which flows over the collar. Despite the re-admittance of the suspended students, School S'ipt. W. Scott Westerman Jr. said today the academie "penal ties" which were incurred during the suspensions (which ineluded "missed opportunities" of class work, assignments and tests) cannot be erased. The special committee will re-examine the grooming policies and make their recommendations to the Ann Arbor Board oí Education, hopefully by the end of October, Westerman said. All school policy changes must be approved by the school bnard. The recommendations t o appoint a special committee to re-examine the grooming policies and to re-admit the suspended students on an interim basis were made last week by the Grievance Committee but were not revealed until today. The Grievance Committee is composed of high-school faculty members and is charged with hearing students' complaints. The Grievance Committee recommended the suspension of tiie grooming rules on an rim basis following a two-hour meeting Friday, Rokicki said. He and Supt. Westerman studied the recommendation over the weekend before announcing a final decisión today. Rokicki said he accepted the recommendations of the Grievance Committee for four reasons: (1) "I am convinced that the results of the committee's deliberations will reflect our community's views on this delicate personal issue." (2) "I believe that those who find they cannot accept the results of this democratie process will then be able to make the change to an environment more suitahle tn their beliefs." (3) "I am deeply concerned about the effects oí a longer suspension on the yoiith and their parents even though I know one must be willing to pay the price for principie." (4) "Finally, I" am desirous that Pioneer High be a school where involvement in the democratie process teaches itb students and faculty respect ior its results and gives all of us the courage to abide by tliem, even iL they go against some of our personal views." Westerman said the Hurón High Grievance Committee concurred in the recommendations oí the Pioneer High Grievance Committee. The grooming rules were ín effect at both Pioneer and Hurón Highs. They stated that a male student's hair could not ílow over the collar of nis shirt, sideburns could not extent belov the lower lip and beards were not permitted. Mustaches were allowed. The suspension of the three students last week for violating the policy led to a threatened student walkout last Thursday and an angry protest by about 25 parents at Wednesday's Board of Education meeting.