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SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- An Ogden High School teacher said a new policy requiring him to cover his tattoos under long sleeves sends a confusing message to students about free expression and diversity.
Mark Johnson, 40, has taught English at the school for 15 years. New rules enacted in January, though, required him to hide his tattoos. Most are tributes to his family members.
The sleeve-length mural on his left forearm includes his wife's initials, his daughter's name in Chinese, and the phrase "Star Cooper," a play on words named after his son who is a huge Star Wars fan. Ban or not, he might add to that one.
"We're thinking about getting a storm trooper helmet with a crossbow," Johnson said.
As a burly, former football player with dreadlocks and bushy beard, Johnson may not fit the mold of the typical high school English teacher dissecting Shakespeare's sonnets.
But Johnson said the inky artwork is part of what sets him apart as an educator, a mentor and someone who imparts lessons about diversity.
"You are going to be dealing with people, some of them will be tattooed, some of them won't," Johnson said. "There are lessons in everything. To me, covering the tattoos is like covering an opportunity."
He got a verbal warning in February about not complying with the policy. Since then Johnson has abided by it, but a lingering bad vibe he feels at Ogden prompted him to start sending out resumes for work elsewhere.
"It's not really the school, it's just the whole idea of controlling and not being open. It's like a big black rain cloud for me," Johnson said.
District spokeswoman Donna Corby said the guidelines -- which also frown on facial piercings and baggy clothing -- are meant to help school employees look more professional.
"We're not asking for shirts and ties and ladies back in dresses," Corby said. "We (just) want you to dress accordingly to the position that you hold."
Corby said students should learn early on that many employers have these sorts of standards in place.
"This is certainly a solvable problem. Wear a long sleeve shirt, there you go," Corby said.
Johnson's tattoos have made him the face of the dress code fallout, but other teachers were affected too.
Halie Vaughan, 36, a special education instructor at Ogden, had a pinhead-sized gold heart as a nose piercing. She agreed to replace it with a transparent and almost unnoticeable stud.
"I'm a role model for our students, even though I disagree with the policy, I comply," Vaughan said.
Still, Vaughan thinks Johnson's tattoos aren't harmful or a poor influence on students.
"They are not gang tattoos, they are not obscene in any way," she said.
(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
