Jade Payadue, a former nursing student at The University of Holy Cross, began the institution's clinical rotations in January 2018 with hopes of becoming a nurse. Now, according to WDSU, she is fighting the school, claiming she was forced to withdraw from her studies due to her natural hair.
Payadue claims she was told her hair was "too big" on the day of the white coat ceremony. Payadue noted the school's provost gave her two options: sign a contract allowing her to remain at the university while undergoing counseling under probation or withdraw from the university without penalty.
“If I didn’t withdraw from the program and I signed that contract, and they found one reason to expel me from the program, that meant I would not be allowed to enroll in another nursing program in the state of Louisiana, for five years," Payadue said.
The university's hair policy reads as follows: "When in lab coat or uniform, hair must be neat and may not extend below the bottom of the collar of the lab coat or uniform. Therefore, long hair must be secured above the collar, off the neck and shoulders and appropriately contained at the back of the head. If the hair is 'put up' the hair may not be higher than four inches. Hair must be clean with the appearance of being shampooed regularly."
According to Teen Vogue, Payadue claimed an instructor patted down her 4a curls and referred to them as "not neat," despite adhering to the four-inch rule.
"At the time of the event, I was surprised and taken aback. I was humiliated, exposed and deprived of my dignity," Payadue told Teen Vogue. "I lost all confidence in the system that was supposed to protect me. I feel deprived of my dream and passion, and all that I worked for. [Women of color] aren’t begging for acceptance — we are demanding respect and fair treatment."
The University of Holy Cross provided an official statement to Teen Vogue in response:
"The University of Holy Cross expects all of its students, while doing their clinical rotations at various hospitals throughout the New Orleans area, to comply with Holy Cross's rules and regulations which are found in the nursing student handbook," said Penny Winfield, associate professor of nursing. "Accredited nursing schools have student handbooks which clearly state student guidelines. Those rules and regulations take into account those of the hospitals where students perform their clinical rotations. To clarify, Jade was not asked to leave University of Holy Cross, she chose to leave because she did not want to comply with university policies."
Overall, Payadue hopes her story adds to the discussion of natural hair in professional settings, whether that be at a higher learning institution or the workplace.
"I'm really concerned about making things different for all black women, all women of color, who are constantly being told the way they were born is not appropriate or not professional," she said.
