High school gives heartless ultimatum to cancer survivor teen who grew hair long to celebrate overcoming disease
A Texas high school senior who grew his hair out to commemorate beating cancer is now being told by callous school officials to cut it, even though he views his long locks as 'his badge of survival.'
At the end of his freshman year, Trent Sampson was diagnosed with cancer, and he subsequently lost all of his hair after undergoing an intensive chemotherapy treatment.
Once he beat the disease, Sampson determined to grow his hair out to celebrate his miraculous survival.
The young high school student hasn't cut it since.
A Texas high school senior who grew his hair out to commemorate beating cancer is now being told by callous school officials to cut it
At the end of his freshman year, Trent Sampson was diagnosed with cancer, and he subsequently lost all of his hair after undergoing an intensive chemotherapy treatment
'Whenever it started growing back, that was kinda like his badge of survival,' Jodie Sampson, Trent's mother, told KXII.
But the Valley View Independent School District is cracking down on its students, and enforcing its new dress code policy, which prohibits male students from having long hair.
The young cancer survivor must now make a major decision: either cut his hair or leave the school district he calls home.
By sharing Trent's heroic recovery with school officials, the teen and his family tried to petition the district's officials to make an exception. They asked for a compromise.
But the district refused to yield, instead upholding the changes in the dress code that went into effect in July .
Valley View Independent School District is cracking down on its students, and enforcing its new dress code policy, which prohibits male students from having long hair
'We tried to speak with the principal and superintendent and say, "can we just put it in a bun or pull it up in a ponytail?"' Trent's mother recounted.
'We were told no,' she continued.
In July, Trent's family received an email from Superintendent Jason Womack, who stood firm on the issue of the dress code.
He wrote: 'The intent of the updated dress code is to support a conservative, modest learning environment.'
But the school was not always so fastidious about the rules. Deanna Vickery, who has children and grandchildren who went through the school district, said:
'My kids were allowed to have long hair when they were in school, but now he can't?'
Trent has said that he will not cut his hair, no matter what the costs.
'My hair is curly at the end of it, and I really like that, and I don’t want to lose that,' he told KXII.
He added: 'It’s from the chemo and it can’t ever grow back.'
Trent has said that he will not cut his hair, no matter what the costs
The cancer survivor will likely be supported by other students in the school in his resistance against the administration.
'Trent is a giant people person, everyone in that school would fight for him, and that's what we're doing,' said fellow senior Jarethy Vickery, who also has long hair.
Vickery added that he would not be taking scissors to his hair, either.
'I see it ending with them changing the dress code, and if it doesn't go that way, shoot, I guess I'll go through my senior year in ISS or OSS or wherever they decide to put me.'
