Splitting hairs, controversial headmaster strikes again

A Larnaca high school headmaster stole the show on the first day of students returning to class after he expelled dozens of children for two days over their “inappropriate hairstyles”.

In comments to Kathimerini’s Cyprus edition, the President of the Cyprus Confederation of Parents of Secondary Education, Charalambos Dionysiou, said the headteacher sent home around 50 students on their first day back on the excuse that their hairstyle defied school regulations.

In the absence of details over the incident, Dionysiou said that if the haircuts broke regulations, that would be the parents’ fault.

He added that even if this was the case, students should have been given a fair warning before being expelled.

The Education Ministry on Thursday said it was unsure of what had happened, having received no evidence the incident had taken place – despite the social media maelstrom.

On CyBC radio, the head of the Director of Secondary Education, Kyprianos Louis, said that if the headmaster did expel the students over their haircut on the first day of school, the act would be rescinded.

Louis had confused listeners by arguing that students were not expelled but were simply given a warning.

He said the ministry had instructed the school’s administration to allow students sent home to return to school.

Complicating matters, Education Minister Prodromos Prodromou claimed that the incident was fake news, angering parents who had taken to social media to post the paperwork of their children’s expulsion.

The incident reportedly took place at the Petrakis Kyprianou Gymnasium, headed by a controversial headmaster, whom the media did not name.

In June, he was accused of racist behaviour after refusing to give a Syrian student his school leaving certificate because of his haircut.

The incident happened during the graduation ceremony at the Larnaca high school, leaving parents outraged.

The same headmaster reportedly sent home an African girl for wearing braids in her hair last year.