Correction: Hairstyle Violations story
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}In a story May 12 about a Massachusetts school's dress policy, The Associated Press reported erroneously in the headlines and in the story that Mystic Valley Regional Charter School in Malden bans the wearing of braids or braids with hair extensions. The school bans hair extensions; it does not ban braids.
A corrected version of the story is below:
Charter school criticized for punishing students over hairstyle
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A Massachusetts charter school association is criticizing a school for disciplining black and biracial students for wearing braids with hair extensions
MALDEN, Mass. (AP) — The Massachusetts Charter Public School Association is criticizing a school for disciplining and suspending black and biracial students because their hairstyles violate the school's dress policy.
The Boston Globe reports the association said the policy and enforcement actions taken by Mystic Valley Regional Charter School in Malden "run counter to everything we — as parents, educators, association board members — stand for and teach in our schools."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Parents say students were punished for wearing braids with hair extensions. They contend white students have not been disciplined for coloring their hair, which also is banned under the dress code.
The school bans hair extensions; it does not ban braids. School administrators say the ban on hair extensions is designed to "foster a culture that emphasizes education rather than style, fashion or materialism."