Regulation 1320.1
| "Assembly topics should relate to the general goals of the instructional program and address areas of special significance. Assemblies that promote a particular enterprise or whose main purpose is entertainment should not be scheduled during the school day. Time for assemblies should be made available through schedule modifications that cause the least disruption to the instructional program." |
| "Although pep rallies may contribute to school spirit, they should not be allowed to interfere with the instructional program. Pep rallies should be scheduled before or after school, with the period after school being the preferred time." |
| —Fairfax County Public Schools Regulation 1320.1 |
Regulation 1320.1 (also known as Guidelines for Restricting Interruptions to Instructional Time—Middle and High Schools) was implemented on April 21, 2004, as an FCPS directive. It was adopted by the county school board to ensure that instructional time in middle and high schools meet limits set by the Virginia Department of Education. The directive limited events such as assemblies and pep rallies by categorizing them as after-school events, with the exception of homecoming pep rallies.
Local radio station DC101's Elliot in the Morning show held a contest in fall 2004 for area high school students whose winners were to host alternative rock band Taking Back Sunday at their school. Westfield students won this contest, whose result was approved by former principal Mike Campbell with the concert date set for Tuesday, November 16. However, students soon learned that a clause in Regulation 1320.1 prohibiting assemblies by business-sponsored groups prevented plans for the concert from being carried out. On Monday, November 15, students began a Taking Back Tuesday movement advocating a schoolwide skip day on the day of the cancelled concert, but it dissolved after Campbell's schoolwide address that afternoon.
Following the incident, students and parents appealed to the school board to return pep rallies to the instructional period and to reconsider the regulation. In a review by the Parent Teacher Student Association, it was found that the school was only allowed one pep rally during the year, adding to the confusion of the situation. In February 2005, FCPS clarified its policy stating that the regulation on pep rallies was not meant to limit school spirit, but the concert remained cancelled.
Read more about this topic: Westfield High School (Fairfax County, Virginia), History
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