School Wants To Suspend Teen Battling Cancer Over What His Shirt Says, Now Father Demands Answers
By Dreamer
A two-time teenage cancer survivor violated his school’s dress code when he wore a t-shirt that said “survivor” on it.
16-year-old Tyler Powers, who is a student at Ridgewood High School in Florida, was taken to an in-school suspension room by his teacher for breaching a new dress code policy which prohibits logos larger than a quarter on pupil’s shirts.
"I was doing my work; I was causing no disruption whatsoever," Powers told TODAY.
Powers was donning an American Cancer Society Relay for Life “survivor” t-shirt at the time of the incident. His teacher told him he had three options: stay in ISS (in-school suspension), have his parents bring him a new shirt, or wear a shirt that the school provides him until the school day ended.
Powers told Inside Edition that he chose to wear a school shirt.
“I have purple Ridgewood shirt. I assumed the shirt I grabbed that morning was a school shirt,” says Powers. “I was extremely disappointed in the staff, anyone who has been at the high school for two weeks knows that I am a two-time leukemia survivor.”
The 16-year-old was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia when he was 5 years old and then cured at age 7. Eventually, he later relapsed and was cured again at age 10.
Powers is also the junior class president and did not have a history of violating school rules before.
School officials say the teacher who penalized Powers was just following protocol.
"She never noticed what was on his shirt and he ever mentioned anything about being a cancer survivor," Linda Cobbe, spokesperson for Pasco County Schools told TODAY. "If he had said something, she would have listened empathetically and explained to him how the logo size limit applies to all shirts and that they can't discriminate by allowing one student to wear a special shirt."
However, Powers father, Tim Powers, says the school needs to revise its dress code.
"It's disturbing," Tim told TODAY. "There's nothing about the shirt that was demeaning or hateful. It's a positive message."
Sources: TODAY, Inside Edition / Photo credit: Tyler Powers via Inside Edition
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