The Tamaqua Area School District has approved an adjustment to its uniform dress code to make sure its students are properly covered up.

At its monthly meeting Tuesday evening, the district's board of education approved the final reading of an amendment to its dress and grooming policy, which already requires students to dress based on a uniform code of styles and colors (navy and white shirts, navy or khaki pants and skirts).The dress code has been tweaked on the recommendation of the district's administration to include undergarments that might be exposed during the course of the school day. If anything is showing underneath, it must match the colors being worn as outer garments.Becky Sheidy, Tamaqua, who is the parent of a 10th grade student, asked for a clarification of the dress code change."My concern is that this specifically said undergarment," said Shiedy, referring to a newspaper account of the change. "Who will be the underwear police?"School board President Larry A. Wittig stated the policy does not mean "undergarment" as in "underwear.""We are trying to work with the student population, especially the female population, who can find it difficult to find shirts to tuck in and cover up," said Assistant Superintendent Raymond J. Kinder.Kinder explained the term "undergarment" was used to cover items such as tank tops and other items which might be in fashion at a particular time. Under Armor is another example."Anything worn under needs to be the same colors (as the uniform)," he stressed. "In six months, it could be called something else."In a related dress code matter, the board approved its standard stipend of $25 per student to provide assistance for uniforms for families that meet the district's financial assistance requirement, which is 130 percent of the poverty level established by the district's free and reduced lunch program.Clubs requestedTracy Perry, West Penn Township, a former candidate for school board, renewed her requests for the high school to establish Future Business Leaders of America and Diversity Clubs.Perry said that if budgetary concerns are preventing the school from adding those clubs, she would personally foot the costs for both clubs for the next five years, putting the necessary funding in an escrow account to ensure its availability.One of the primary costs associated with clubs is the stipend for the advisors, although the district usually asks the advisor of a newly-formed club to serve the first year on a voluntary basis before the stipend is approved.Wittig said all of the district's clubs were re-evaluated by administration over the past two years, based on the district's academic and economic needs."I don't think that is going to change," he said.When Perry offered to pay for the FBLA and Diversity clubs, Wittig acknowledged that was very generous of her, but the schools would continue to have the clubs that have been already been designated."I am not debating the merits of these clubs, but we are in a very precarious financial situation," Wittig said. "We are in negotiations with our service personnel and teachers (whose contracts are up this year), and it's very tenuous."We are increasing the music department (a guitar course was added to the middle school curriculum Tuesday) and lowering class size. We can't do anything different than we are. It might come down to cutting staff, and right now, we're not. In five years, anything can happen."The short answer is no," concluded Wittig.Drug testingPerry also questioned the board regarding the initial round of mandatory drug and alcohol testing for students in grades 7-12 planning to participate in co-curricular activities or seek driving privileges. The first round of testing was completed earlier this month.Kinder said about 500 students were tested, using a urine Redi-Test. Software would be used to select students via a lottery-type system for the follow-up random testing, at a rate of about 30 per month. The testing used is similar to what the juvenile probation system uses, he explained.The results of the tests are to be kept confidential and locked in a file in the school, to be purged at the completion of the school year. The dates of the random testing are also confidential and known only to administrators.Perry questioned the certification process of the testing firm, Redwood Toxocology in California, based on the ease of administrators being certified through the firm's website."Do they need any additional training, and will this testing hold up in court?" she asked.Kinder said the test is not difficult to administer, with the process taking about five minutes."It's not the type of test that you would need a medical background to do it," he noted.Perry felt that some psychological training might be necessary to assist students who test positive, falsely or not. She asked if there were any positive tests so far, but Kinder and the board did not disclose that information.Helmet neededTheresa Houser, whose son Cody is a freshman member of the Tamaqua varsity football team, addressed the board about the need for an extra large helmet for her son. The district does not have a helmet to fit Houser, and athletic director Michael Hromyak has ordered a special helmet for him, at a cost of $350, although it has not arrived in time for the start of practice this week. Houser cannot take place in contact drills without the protective headgear."Special order helmets take awhile," said Kinder.Board secretary Robert W. Betz suggested checking with other schools to find a helmet for Houser until the special helmet is ready. It was also mentioned that the district should check with colleges or the National Football League as an alternative.