Taylor Pugh Could Be Suspended from Pre K over Long Hair

2010 UPDATE: The school board has spoken. Read about their decision here.

Taylor Pugh, a 4-year-old in pre-K at a school in Texas, has long hair. He likes it that way. It sits just under his ears. He likes it longer in front.

That length, however, doesn’t meet the school district’s dress code so Pugh has been studying alone in the school library. According to his mom, the district will kick him out of school if they don’t comply.

“He only goes two and half hours a day. He’s not a distraction. He doesn’t get teased,” says mom, Elizabeth Taylor (no, not THE Elizabeth Taylor).

Ever since November, Taylor has been getting lessons in the school’s library, separated from the rest of his class. Elizabeth says that the school district hired a substitute aide to work with him.

She says the Taylor’s hair wasn’t an issue until the end of October. Then, the principal informed her that she would have to cut his hair. She refused saying that he likes his hair long. Also, his father has long hair and the family has Native American heritage.

The school district seems “more concerned about his hair than his education,” said Taylor’s father, Delton Pugh. “I don’t think it’s right to hold a child down and force him to do something … when it’s not hurting him or affecting his education.”