We, the undersigned parents, guardians, residents, alumni, and concerned community members, are calling upon the Addison Central School District Board of Education to amend its Code of Conduct and remove the provision that permits authorized school employees to conduct strip searches of students.

We understand that this provision may have existed in the District’s Code of Conduct for years. How long it has existed does not change our concern.

Many parents and community members may never have realized that this authority was included in the Code of Conduct. Now that attention has been brought to it, we believe it deserves immediate public review.

This is not about blaming the current administration, teachers, or Board for creating a new policy. This is about asking our District to reconsider an existing policy and decide whether it still belongs in our schools.

We support Addison Central School District’s responsibility to protect students from weapons, drugs, dangerous contraband, and other legitimate threats. However, we do not believe school employees should have the authority to require a child to remove their clothing as part of a school search.

We are therefore asking the Board of Education to remove Section 11(C), “Strip Searches,” and replace it with procedures that protect school safety without permitting school employees to strip-search students.

A policy being longstanding does not automatically make it appropriate. Our children deserve safety, privacy, dignity, and protection.

And I’d change the big slogan from “STOP” to:

IT’S TIME TO CHANGE THE POLICY.

NO SCHOOL-EMPLOYEE STRIP SEARCHES OF ADDISON STUFENTS.