Students in the Lowndes County School District will begin wearing uniforms district-wide next year, following a 3-1 vote by the board during Friday’s meeting.

The motion was made by board member Wesley Barrett and seconded by Jacqueline Gray. Board member Brian Clark cast the lone dissenting vote, saying a survey issued last year indicated Caledonia parents are opposed to the idea. Overall, 30 percent of parents across the district were opposed and 20 percent supported uniforms. Fifty percent did not respond.

“When you look at the votes, the Caledonia district has noted that they do not want them, and I just want to note that,” Clark said.

Gray, along with Superintendent Lynn Wright, said the West Lowndes elementary, middle and high schools have had uniforms for several years.

“They’re a good model to go by,” Wright said.

Wright, a longtime proponent of mandatory school uniforms, said 25 percent of the schools in the nation have them, and he believes they increase campus safety and make it easier to enforce the dress code.

“We have a pretty good dress code, but we have a lot of students who refuse to comply,” Wright said. “What happens is we have a lot of parents who get upset about their students getting punished for dress code violations.”

Clark proposed committees be formed at each school to determine guidelines. The committees should be formed quickly so they can present their guidelines at the May 9 board meeting, board president Bobby Barksdale said.

The issue of school uniforms has been raised — and rejected — countless times in the district. The motion was tabled last month after board member Jane Kilgore said she was not comfortable voting until she had a firm grasp on what parents and students wanted. Kilgore was not present at Friday’s meeting.

Sarah Fowler covered crime, education and community related events for The Dispatch.