I sent this letter to someone at BISD, but I think everyone needs to hear it. There is so much involved in learning, and none of it revolves around what you wear.

I don't understand why I have received two calls this year about Destiny's hair. It seems that you would be concentrating on more important things, like educating young minds. It doesn't make me mad that the school has rules, although I think many of them are foolish and stifling. It's the hypocrisy that angers me.

The first time you called me about her hair, you didn't like the red highlights because they were "unnatural." I assure you that I can walk into that school tomorrow and provide you with an array of teachers who have unnaturally streaked hair.

Today, you singled out Destiny because of the spikes in her hair. When you took her to the nurse's office to wash them out, the nurse asked you what the difference was between spikes and mohawks. I'd like an answer to that, since I know for a fact that there was a boy with a 3-inch tall mohawk walking around that school today. I also know he wasn't singled out and embarrassed and told to wash HIS hair.

Let me tell you something about my daughter that you can't see beyond the hair. Destiny is on the A/B honor roll. She is in honors classes - ELA, pre-algebra, science and U.S. history. She is 3rd chair in band and is going to region tryouts on Friday. She received the perfect attendance award. She just got a 94 on her mock reading TAKS test. She is really great at art. She likes to make YouTube videos and layouts that people from all over rate and use because they are really good. She reads more than she talks. She likes anime. She loves to be creative and is always trying new things. She is an individual. And you want to squash it.

I might not like your hair or your clothes or the way you wear your makeup. I might not like the fact that you wear more than one bracelet on your arm at one time or that you wear two necklaces. But those things would mean far less to me than how you conduct yourself or the quality of your character. I would be more impressed if I knew that you cared more about my daughter's quality of education and less about her looks. Does it really bother you that much? Is it so distracting that she spiked her hair? Or did it waste an entire class period for her because she had to sit around and wait for you to finally take her off to the nurse's office to wash out the spikes that you don't like?

Please don't call me and talk about dress code or policy. You have kids in that school with lip piercings and tongue piercings and eyebrow piercings.

You have kids with mohawks. You have an untold number of kids with unntural hair color. You've got shorts that are too short, shirts that are cut too low, and don't even get me started on the cheerleaders' skirts ... or the used condoms between the portable buildings on your campus. But somehow you are worried about Destiny's spikey hair.

I don't bring up the piercings or hair to get more kids in trouble. I applaud their individuality. They are kids. This is their time to learn who they are, not to be cloned into what others want them to be. They have parents who decide what is good and bad for them. That is no one else's job. You could make a difference in their lives by encouraging the best in them. But you focus on what you perceive to be the negative.

My daughter might just be a face (or hair) to you in a sea of students. But she is so much more than that. I am proud of her for being who she wants to be ... strong, smart, dutiful, creative, funny, respectful, outgoing, shy. She is not afraid to be herself. She is an individual. Her hair does not define her. It just makes her happy. Tell me what's wrong with that.

I hear you have a saying at that school: "Learning is job 1 at Bear country." So far, I've learned that when a parent calls you to talk about an issue with their child, you don't care enough to call them back. And oh yeah, you've taught my daughter to judge a book by its cover. I guess she learned something too. Good job.

Lisa Garrison Brownsboro, TX