Iowa Administrative Code

Admin. law judge upholds Waterloo's dress code policy

WATERLOO, Iowa --- An administrative law judge Thursday affirmed the Waterloo Community Schools' revised dress code, saying officials had created "a meaningful, lawful policy."

But one of those who appealed the policy lamented the "limited scope" of the ruling and said it left open the possibility of future appeals.

Judge Carol Greta released an 11-page proposed decision on Waterloo parents Ricki and Teesha Peters' appeal of the dress code revision. It was approved by Waterloo's Board of Education Dec. 13, 2010, after the judge ruled against the school district's policy in an earlier appeal brought by the same couple. The policy was put in place at a number of schools last year and went into effect district wide when classes started earlier this month.

Greta wrote that in revising the policy to make it proscriptive - or outlining only what students may not wear, as required by Iowa law - the district shaped "what could have been a meaningless exercise in semantics into a meaningful, lawful policy."

Greta's decision followed a June 20 hearing. The state Board of Education will decide Sept. 15 whether to affirm the district's policy.

"I'm hopeful that this decision means that we can all move forward with focusing on student achievement," said Mike Young, an attorney and president of Waterloo's school board. "I felt that the administrative law judge confirmed the district policy fully and affirmed its legality in its entirety."

Ricki Peters suggested that the decision didn't go that far.

"It affirms their right to have a dress code, and that's all the judge ruled on," he said. "We're disappointed in the limited scope of the decision."

The Peterses' appeal took issue with the policy's prohibitions against some clothing, like bottoms made of certain fabrics or items with patterns and particular colors.

In a news release, Superintendent Gary Norris said, "Our schools are safer and have a more desirable climate for learning because of the dress code," he said.

Summer Reads For Businesses in Iowa « Chris B. Law

Good to Great – Jim Collins

Getting to Yes – Roger Fisher and William Ury

How to Win Friends and Influence People – Dale Carnegie

If you read my blog, you are likely a family member or recognize the need to “brush up” on the law before your business is in trouble. With so many topics of interest for savvy business people to cover, I have developed my list of “Summer Reads for real Businesses in Iowa.”

Summer Reads for Businesses in Iowa:

Cyber Law: A Legal Arsenal for Online Business – Brett J. Trout

Cyber Law offers a guide to online business, including navigating pitfalls Cyber Law effectively translates “online geek” to “everyday business owner.” Unlike, the rest of my list, this book is actually fun to read.

The Human Resources Manual of a large organization or state agency.

You can get one from a business associate or buy an up to date version. As you read the manual, ask yourself why each provision is in the manual and if your business (no matter how small) may use some of those ideas.

Your own Human Resources manual.

Each business owner should be the expert in the business’s human resources manual. If you don’t understand it, talk with your lawyer about re-writing it. No business owner ever won a case by saying “I did not understand my own manual.”

The “standard” contracts used by your business.

If you don’t understand it, talk with your lawyer about re-writing it. No business owner ever won a case by saying “I did not understand my own contract.”

The actual regulations of your industry (and then the website that explains the regulations that you just read).

For this I recommend an iPad, Kindle or reader. State and federal regulations are free to the public and published in the Code of Federal Regulations (“CFR”). The US Government site provides a keyword search.

Some agencies provide websites with quick explanations of their regulations as well as FAQ pages. Additionally, many agencies publish updates on their websites, of which a complete listing is available here.

Code, the hidden language of computer hardware and software

Iowa, The Middle Land

Iowa, the middle land

The code book, the science of secrecy from ancient Egypt to quantum cryptography

Cutting Red Tape Administrative Simplification in Poland, Making Policies Perform