Comment MALDEN, Mass. — A Massachusetts charter school where an eighth-grader was written up for a uniform violation for wearing a hijab says it understands “the handling of the situation was considered insensitive.” A family member of the Mystic Valley Regional Charter School student posted on social media an image of the “School Uniform Compliance Form” the student received from a hijab teacher on Thursday. In the description of the offence, the headscarf worn by Muslim women was misspelled as ‘jihab’. The school said in an emailed statement that it allows students to wear religious attire “as an expression of their sincere beliefs” but asks students to provide a letter “expressing this desire from a member of their clergy.” Superintendent of Schools Alex Dunn said there were no consequences for the student and that the form sent home was intended to start a conversation with the family about getting a religious accommodation. But Dan acknowledged that the situation was handled properly. “While we would like to reiterate that the respected member of staff overseeing the process should bear no responsibility for what has happened, we understand how our handling of the situation was seen as insensitive and look forward to using this moment as an opportunity to learn and improve our policies and procedures,” the school’s statement said. The Massachusetts chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations says its attorneys are representing the student’s family and are investigating the situation. The student now wears a hijab to school, the group said. CAIR-Massachusetts Executive Director Tahirah Amatul-Wadud said wearing a hijab or other religious attire should not require families to seek accommodation. “I wish this student would never have to justify what she’s wearing,” she said Sunday. “I don’t ever want them to have to justify that this requires accommodation.” Mystic Valley Regional Charter School was also targeted in 2017 for a no-braid hair extension policy. The parents of the then 15-year-olds said their twin daughters, who are black, were punished for wearing hair extensions, while the white students were not punished for hairstyle violations. After intense criticism, including from Democratic Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey, the school abandoned the policy. In July, Republican Gov. Charlie Baker signed a law prompted by that incident to ban discrimination based on natural and protective hairstyles — such as mousses, cornrows or tightly coiled twists — in workplaces, school districts and school organizations in the state. This story has been corrected to reflect that the group’s name is Council on American-Islamic Relations, not Islamic-American Relations.
