HOUMA, La. (AP)After a decade of khakis, skirts and collared shirts, little data exists to show whether school uniforms have done what the Terrebonne and Lafourche school boards wanted by boosting campus security and reducing problems with behavior and discipline.

Officials in both parishes say uniforms are just one facet of an overall approach to make schools safe and trouble-free. But they are reluctant to link data on disciplinary infractions with mandatory uniforms.

“You cannot compare attendance and discipline data over the years before the uniform policy and after the uniform policy and credit just the uniform policy as improving attendance and discipline,” said Frank Pasqua, supervisor of child welfare and attendance for Lafourche. “There are many other variables or procedures in place to do the same thing and all of them together are working to improve attendance and discipline.”

Discipline policies may change from year to year, and the state Legislature periodically adds new infractions, such as a provision against wearing body armor to school added this year, skewing data.

In addition, enrollments in both parish school systems have dropped by hundreds of students, making pre-uniform and post-uniform comparisons problematic.

Nationally, competing studies are cited to demonstrate the effectiveness of school uniforms in combating discipline problems or the reverse. Opponents say compulsory uniforms stifle students' freedom of expression with a negligible affect on safety and behavior.

Even so, local school officials are confident uniforms have improved student behavior and created safer school environments.

“Do school uniforms make it easier to identify a non-student on campus? Yes. Do school uniforms decrease student harassment and teasing over what students wear? Yes. Do school uniforms decrease theft of expensive name-brand clothes? Yes,” Pasqua said.

Graham Douglas has been Terrebonne High's principal for six years and worked as a teacher and assistant principal in the parish school system before uniforms.

On Friday, two days before school was to start in Terrebonne, Douglas said uniforms have helped take the focus off clothing for students.

“It's not about clothing; it's about getting a good education,” he said, adding that making dress a part of the school culture prepares students for the business world after they graduate. “It's taken out the fighting, envy and jealousy. ... Without a doubt, I wholeheartedly support the uniforms. I think it's great.”

However, some parents critical of the policies say the uniforms don't guard against teasing and bullying and are an added expense for cash-strapped families.

Instead of fights over designer labels, kids get teased over who has dollar-store uniforms and cheap shoes versus the preferred Dickies-brand clothes, according to Bourg mother Felicia Burnley, who was shopping Wednesday with her daughters at Jake's School Uniforms on St. Charles Street.

“I don't support it at all,” she said, adding that she spends at least $500 a year on uniforms for her five children.

Her 13-year-old daughter, Megan Burnley, who will be a seventh-grader at Montegut Middle this year, is not fond of school uniforms.

She hates “wearing pants up so high and tucking in shirts.”

“When you tuck in your shirt, you look fat,” she said. “And if you don't get the right shoes, you get teased.”

A few aisles away, Asante Commodore was shopping for her son Dakarai Johnson, soon to be a fourth-grader at Acadian Elementary.

“People express themselves through their wardrobe,” she said, noting that she spent about $800 on school clothes for her children last year. “I really don't think the whole thing helps. It's definitely not any less expensive.”

By Robert Zullo - The Courier