As of Nov. 20, students may notice a lack of reprimanding from teachers regarding students wearing hats.

According to an email sent out to all staff from Interim Assistant Principal Kari Schwietering Nov. 19, hats and hoods are now allowed in school.

The email states there will be an evaluation of the policy change as it is put in place and alterations to the policy will be added as needed.

The reason for this change is the belief of the staff that enforcing the ban on hats, which has been in place for more than 10 years, is not worth the conflict it creates between students and staff.

Freshman Laura Moforngu said she is glad the administration changed the policy and she thinks it will benefit the overall contentment of the students.

“I think that it is really good that they allow hats now because a lot of kids feel more comfortable with their hats or hoodies,” Moforngu said.

Schwietering said the new technology in the school plays a big part in this decision. The ban on hats was originally in place because of concerns regarding the identification of students on camera.

“The reason this is not a concern to the degree that it was at that time is that we have more cameras and the quality of the cameras and what you can see is much better than what it was,” Schwietering said.

Schwietering said the decision was not made on impulse. There was a long process in finalizing this policy change which has been discussed as of two years ago.

“A variety of people had input,” Schwietering said. “We sent a survey out to staff, had an open meeting for staff to share questions concerns and input. Then we asked specific teachers who had a variety of grades, demographics and classes to ask their students what their feedback was. We also talked to the superintendent.”

According to the email, contact the student office with any questions or concerns regarding the new policy.