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Student says she was banned from class over her hair color

Posted at 10:40 PM, Apr 21, 2017
and last updated 2017-04-21 22:40:11-04

CHICAGO -- A student at a Chicago charter high school says she was banned from class because of her hair color, WGN reports.

Daisy Chavero has been out of class for five days.

The freshman at Chicago Bulls College Prep on the city's West Side says she colored her hair last Thursday and when she came to school she was immediately sent to detention.

Daisy's mother Angie did try to return her daughter's hair to a more natural color by using a dark auburn hair dye, but the tint of red has remained, as has the suspension.

Daisy has been allowed to study on an in-school suspension but not been allowed in her regular classes.

She is also a special education student. Advocates for the Chavero family say the school is not providing her with special education services in suspension and therefore violating her rights.

The school has a policy which does not allow any unnatural hair colors which may be distracting to students. An addendum to that policy was handed out at the beginning of the school year specifying unnatural red hair.

Daisy's mother argues her daughter's hair is auburn and not red. She did see the addendum about red hair specifically but not until recently.

“The addendum was handed out to students, not their parents, so the parents are issued a handbook,” she said. “Those handbooks should have every addendum the school chooses to bring forward. If it does not provide it to the adult or the guardian, it’s not a legal format.”

The school’s principal issued a statement to WGN News saying:

A student code of conduct that creates the highest conditions for academic success is our priority, and we always try to apply our policies fairly in every situation. I regret how this particular instance played out this week. I recognize that the student attempted to make good-faith corrections in regard to our initial concern. Daisy's family has been with Noble for many years, and we look forward to welcoming her back to class on Monday.

Following the press conference Friday afternoon outside the school, Daisy and her mother were able to sit down with administrators and work out their differences to get her back in the classroom, according to WGN.