"The whole idea of it was innocent," said O’Donnell, 21. "It was an organized and structured activity where the girls met at one of their friend’s houses and had pasta and all did each other’s hair."

Pamela Keller -- whose daughter is on the 18-member team -- said the girls were told by various staff members that they had to remove the curlers, and at least some of the girls, including her daughter, Patricia, were threatened with suspension if they refused.

"They all had a ponytail full of curlers. They were told ... they had to take the curlers out, and when asked why, they were told it was a distraction to the learning process," Keller said.

"It’s up to the principal’s discretion what she considers a distraction to the learning process. Basically, anything is a distraction if she sees fit. That’s the frustrating part."

O’Donnell, a first-year coach who doesn’t work in the school, said she received a call from Pontes early Friday morning "saying it wasn’t that she didn’t support the team, but those rollers were a distraction."

The "bigger distraction" O’Donnell said, was making the girls remove the curlers, since they had to go to the bathroom and "waste 20 minutes taking them out."

"It was really ridiculous," O’Donnell said. "I think it was really more of a way not to let the kids get too involved in anything. It kind of hinders their self-expression in a way."

"We are in the business of educating, and we want students to be in the mind-set for learning, and anything that is distraction to the learning process, we want to minimize," Ponte said. "When a student walks into the auditorium and all eyes turn around because the student is wearing curlers in the hair, that is a distraction."

O’Donnell said the word suspension may not actually have been used, but the girls were told if they didn’t remove the curlers, they had to go home, and if they went home, the competition would be canceled.

"I get in trouble with them all the time," O’Donnell said. "(The team) can’t wear tank tops to practice or short shorts to practice because it’s inappropriate, yet the boys play shirts against skins in basketball."

O’Donnell said on one of the first days of practice, the girls were going to run laps in tank tops and shorts, but the principal told her it was "inappropriate and against the rules in the handbook."

"One of them wore jeans that were ripped (and had colored material) underneath, but she had to change because the ripped jeans were a distraction," O’Donnell said. "It’s ridiculous. It’s an innocent activity."

"I called the school at the beginning of the year when they were told they couldn’t wear their uniforms on game day," Keller said. "And when I asked why they were allowed to wear their top and not their skirt, (I was) told it was a distraction to the learning. These skirts are given by the school to these students."

"They wear their shirts to show their spirit," Ponte said. "They don’t have to wear the entire uniform. It’s been part of our tradition; the teams will wear their team shirt to show their team spirit."

According to Ponte, the student handbook states, "Proper dress by students in school helps to create good attitudes, atmosphere and impression. School attire should be neat, clean and appropriate. If at any time a pupil’s dress or appearance does not reflect school expectations, then he or she will be requested to make any necessary changes."

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