Dublin ISD employees will now be able to have visible tattoos at school after a year-long process filled with surveys, feedback and guidance.
At the Monday, July 28 school board meeting , the vote passed 4 to 3 with school board members Raymond Salinas, James Moore, Ryan Mitchell and Bob Cervetto voting in favor of allowing tattoos and AnjelicaSalyer, Pat Leatherwood and Blanca Martineau voting in opposition.
The motion was to amend the employee dress code in the handbook to read the following: “Visible tattoos may not depict derogatory or lewd images and language. Visible tattoos that depict or promote tobacco products, alcoholic beverages, drugs, sexual content, hate speech, or gang activity are prohibited.”
At last month’s meeting, teacher Clara Dower shared information gathered by a tattoo committee that had been formed on how students, teachers and 7-12 grade students had about DISD teachers felt about displaying visible tattoos during school hours.
A survey given out stated that 78 parents believed educators should be allowed to display tattoos while working in a school setting around students, 20 were in opposition and eight were undecided. The survey was available for all parents to complete online.
For students in 7th-12th grade, 118 were in favor of letting teachers display tattoos, seven were against and six were undecided for a total of 131 survey participants. There are approximately 550 students in those grade levels.
For educators, 67 are in favor of allowing tattoos, 15 are opposed and 13 were undecided, for a total of 95. There are approximately 200 employees.
“Tattoos are a common sight in the modern society. They do not hold the same stigma as they used to. Our teachers, parents and even our students have tattoos. It’s just a part of our lives right now,” Dower said during the public comment portion of the July 28 board meeting. “I believe it is important students see tattooed professionals working to improve their lives through education. As my tattoos do not affect my ability to deliver effective, real-world instruction.”
For the tattoo policy just like the current dress and grooming code for staff, their immediate supervisor (principals) will monitor it, and then if a further decision is needed, the superintendent. The principal will determine any ambiguous definitions for language.
“We’vetalkedaboutit,and surveyed,” Superintendent Melissa Summers said.
Both Cervetto and Summers complimented the teachers and tattoo committee for doing the hard work to get this before the board and doing it the right way.
“You could have been keyboard warriors but you’ve been nothing but professionals,” Summers said.
“Thank you for your time and patience,” Cervetto said.
After the meeting, Leatherwood expressed why he voted in opposition to the motion.
“We’ve been told all along if we don’t do this people won’t come to work in Dublin,” he said. “We have all our teachers, we have no vacancies. If they said we still have 10 teacher vacancies it would have been a different ballgame.”
Leatherwood said he was also concerned about putting yet another responsibility on administrators if a tattoo was appropriate.
“Our principals and administratorshavesomuch responsibility. Why are we putting more pressure on our administrators when we don’t have to?” he said.
Martineau also commented about her vote after the meeting in a phone conversation.
“When the board was asked to vote on allowing staff to display visible tattoos at work, I gave it thoughtful and prayerful consideration. I deeply respect our teachers and staff, and I understand that tattoos can carry personal meaning. At the same time, I felt it was important to represent the many families who still value a more traditional, professional appearance in our schools, the ‘silent majority,’ she said. “This decision wasn’t about judgment, but about maintaining a standard that reflects our community’s values.”
Martineau also cited more stress put on administration as a factor.
“I fully support the decision of the board and the direction we’ve taken as a team. I remain committed to open, respectful dialogue and will continue to support a school culture that is professional, welcoming and true to what makes Dublin such a special place,” she said.
Salyer also offered comments about her vote.
“First of all, this was not a decision that was taken lightly. It has taken over a year of discussion and much consideration along with surveys that went out to teachers, students, and their families in which only a fraction of them participated,” she said. “While I respect and value the individuality of our teachers and entire staff, I believe maintaining professional standards in appearance best supports our district’s image and community expectations,” she said. “The decision was made with thoughtful consideration for all perspectives and I stand by the board’s decision and am confident in the direction we’re headed together.”
Salaries
Several items affecting employee salaries were addressed and approved at the meeting.
DISD will again be giving an efficiency payment for all employees in November based on years of service ranging from $500 on the low end to $1,500 on the top end.
Summers said employees enjoy the payment to help with Christmas expenses.
The district also approved their employee compensation plan, their at-will employee salaries and their administrator salaries.
“We have legislative changes that require certain teachers to have pay raises, it doesn’t require all teachers and all staff to have pay raises,” Summers said. “She [Kassi Eads] has spent lots and lots of time to make it work where everyone has some kind of pay range.”
For all teachers, they will still receive their step increase payments as well as some form of raise.
For teachers with no experience up to 2 years, the district is giving them a $500 raise funded from local dollars. For example, a first year teacher will be receiving $36,460 plus an additional $500 supplement.
For teachers with 3-5 years of experience, they will receive a $4,000 raise funded by the state. For example, a three year teacher will receive $38,650 plus a $4,000 supplement.
For teachers over 5 years of experience, they will receive an $8,000 raise funded by the state. For example, a five year teacher will receive $41,730 plus an $8,000 supplement.
These raises amount to $460,000 from the state.
DISD is adding the funds as a supplemental payment to make it easier to track, however, it still counts in the teacher’s base pay and for their retirement.
Masters and PHd degrees of education also have a supplemental payment of $500.
These raises are for classroom teachers only.
For counselors, diagnosticians etc. they will receive an additional $3,000 supplement, bringing their total supplement paid by DISD up to $10,000.
Nurses are getting an additional $1,000 supplement, bringing their total supplement up to $8,000. Both of these are paid for from local dollars.
At-Will employees such as custodial staff will receive a 4% raise partially funded through the state and partially funded with local dollars. The state is providing $53,000 out of the needed $76,000.
Administrators will receive a 2% raise completely funded through local dollars.
“It’s never enough. They work so hard,” Summers said of all employees.
The board also set its proposed tax rate with the same maintenance and operations rate as last year at $0.7552 per $100 evaluation and $0.1157 per one-hundred dollars of evaluation for interest and sinking (debt services) for a total amount of $0.8709.
The total proposed tax rate is slightly higher than last year but is anticipated to come down before the adopted tax rate is approved in August.
Public comment on dress code Parent Brittany Nail spoke about the student dress code during the public comment section of the meeting.
“The dress code is heavily supportive of the boys, I have noticed,” she said. “My child is 95 pounds soaking wet, muscle and limbs for days. Her fingertips literally touch her kneecaps. So when she wears leggings to school with an adult medium sweater ... I know not everyone parents like I do, but I’m not letting my children leave the house wearing something inappropriate. If I feel like it’s appropriate to wear to school and then I get called up to school to bring her pants because it’s not to her fingertips. It says that body types are considered for everything but that has not been our experience.”
Nail said on the last day of school her daughter wore shorts that were appropriate but still did not meet the fingertip guidelines and she had to take her daughter pants or she would have been put in ISS.
“You’re telling me my daughter’s education is not important? These are my feelings. She has to sit in an office and miss class until I can bring her something that other people feel is appropriate,” Nail said.
Nail also said allowing small holes in jeans and permitting the cheerleaders to wear their uniforms all day on Friday for school spirit should be permitted.
“I get it, we all need rules, we all abide by rules, but they are also children who should be comfortable at school and be confident in themselves,” she said.
The student handbook was approved unanimously by the board with changes made in the legislative update only.