Here at Monroe High, when one person is diagnosed with an almost terminal illness, we rally around them and let them know they are not alone. That is just the sort of community we are, even holding an annual charity basketball game. We are also a school who does not have an outrageously strict dress code, thankfully. This, apparently, is not the case at Madison Academy in Burton, Michigan.

                                                J.T Gaskins is a 17-year-old boy who was diagnosed with infant acute lymphoblastic leukemia at 8 weeks old. For almost all of his childhood, he went through chemotherapy and sent the disease into remission. Gaskins was an honorable student as he was awarded a place on his school’s wall of fame for perfect behavior. So it came as a surprise when he was suspended for violating the school’s dress code.

                                                Gaskins was growing his hair out in honor of a family friend who was also battling cancer. He intended to grow a 10’ inch pony tail to donate to the foundation Locks of Love who makes wigs for cancer patients who lost their hair. This justifiable act, unfortunately, did not comply with the school’s dress code which said that a boy’s hair had to be “clean and neat, free of unnatural or distracting colors, off the collar and ears and out of the eyes,” according to news.yahoo.com.

                                                His mother told ABC News that she was “dumbfounded” by the punishment and “very much concerned about him missing part of his senior year of high school.” ABC also reported that the school “could not lift the policy for one student. It plans to give it some more consideration.”

                                                The boy himself said to ABC that he is “not opposed to school policies or trying to create a loophole so kids can have long hair.”