The Clark County School District has a new policy on graduation regalia, after a judge ruled that graduating students have the right to wear certain attire that represents “lawful, protected forms of expression.”

District officials on Monday afternoon sent an email to students and administrators announcing that graduating seniors will be allowed to wear up to five “stoles and flat decorations and adornments on caps and gowns” during high school graduation ceremonies this spring.

The move came one day after a federal judge — in an emergency ruling — said that CCSD seniors could wear certain items at graduation after the American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada filed a lawsuit on May 16 on behalf of CCSD senior Corie Humphrey.

She wanted to wear a stole with “Black Girl Magic” written on it to represent her Black culture, according to the lawsuit.

The school district had earlier adopted a policy on March 27 governing graduation regalia, according to the lawsuit, though the ACLU asserted that the policy unfairly required that students obtain “prior approval from school officials” to wear certain items at graduation.

The lawsuit indicated that Humphrey, a senior at East Career Technical Academy who is set to walk during the school’s graduation ceremony Tuesday, was told she couldn’t wear the “Black Girl Magic” stole.

The original complaint refers to six CCSD seniors, including Humphrey, in the ACLU’s emerging leaders program, whose schools have varying policies regarding what they can wear and what happens if what they wear is deemed inappropriate.

The ACLU has asked for a single policy for all CCSD students.

Judge rules graduation stoles protected forms of expression

During the hearing Sunday, U.S. District Judge Richard Boulware ruled that Humphrey’s stole, along with others to be worn by the graduating seniors in the ACLU program, represent lawful, protected forms of expression.

An attempt by the Las Vegas Review-Journal to reach a CCSD official for additional comment was unsuccessful Monday.

The ACLU had initially filed the lawsuit in state court in Nevada before it was moved to federal court.

“We have a ruling at this point, so the district should be aware about constitutionality of what this policy should now look like,” Athar Haseebullah, executive director of the ACLU of Nevada, said on Monday. “We would encourage those who are overseeing these graduation celebrations to make sure that they don’t engage in unconstitutional restrictions. We’ll be back for more if we recognize there’s a constitutional violation occurring.”

While the ruling allows for additional messages on regalia, students still must adhere to other existing guidelines, according to the email from the district.

“Decorations and adornments must not be lewd, obscene, vulgar, profane, promote violence, promote the use of illicit drugs, constitute harassment, bullying or discrimination,” the email said.

Haseebullah said he’s impressed with the “courage” that Humphrey displayed during the litigation process. She was the only student named in the lawsuit.

“In an era where we’re seeing increased censorship, book bans left and right, and calls to ban diversity, equity and inclusion efforts, our goal is to allow to express themselves the way they want to,” Haseebullah said. “That’s also not just our goal, it’s what the Constitution says and what (Nevada law) says.”

Nevada law allows students to wear tribal regalia, and school boards can prohibit attire only if it interferes with the ceremony, according to the complaint.

Contact Bryan Horwath at bhorwath@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BryanHorwath on X.

ACLU doc on CCSD graduation by Las Vegas Review-Journal on Scribd