By COLE REIF
Great Bend Post
As the end of the school year is drawing near, USD 428 staff is preparing items for the following school year. The Great Bend school board on Monday heard the first reading of proposed changes for the 2025-2026 student and teacher handbooks.
Great Bend High School Assistant Principal Kip Wilson said for students needing to go to their vehicle during school hours, they must be accompanied by an administrator. Wilson told school board member Jacquie Disque he believes this will eventually slow down students from going to their cars if they have an administrator waiting with them.
"As far as going to their car and being accompanied by an administrator, is this going to be become a problem?" asked Disque.
"I don't think it will," responded Wilson. "I think it will slow the traffic down."
"I just think you have better things to do than walk kids to their cars," said Disque. "I also understand them needing to go to the car because they forgot their homework or whatever."
Under the dress code, the new handbook prohibits head coverings. The new code will read that hats, caps, head coverings and tails must not be worn inside the building. While the head coverings addition mostly refers to hoods, Wilson was asked about the possibility of wigs.
"There could possibly be a medical reason where we would have conversations and make necessary exceptions," said Wilson. "If it is artificial, I would consider that a head covering. The other thing that came up in discussion was a religious exemption, but we haven't seen any of that. A lot of this pertains to hoods."
Approval of the student and teacher handbooks will be requested at the May school board meeting.