Uniforms in Public School - the Cookie Cutter Should Crumble

Dressing Up Academics: Strict Dress Codes in Public Schools
Back to school shopping is usually a student's favorite part of the going back to school ritual. Along with paper, pencils, and backpacks were cool, new jeans and kicking, new sneakers. It was a time filled with fashion and imagination. What image do you want to have this year? The first day was a whirl wind of reuniting with old friends and new cloths. Reminiscent of the red carpet, your outfit would be planned out weeks, maybe even months, ahead of time right down to the smallest detail. My former school took this age old tradition out back and shot it! They ripped the excitement right out of the back to school rush.

The school that I graduated from instituted a very strict, almost uniform-like, dress code. The code specified that students must wear red, white, blue, black, or gray shirts. The shirts could not have any logo, be sheer, or reveal any cleavage or the midriff. In addition to all of those regulations hooded clothing was never permitted. The boys could wear black, blue, gray, or khaki colored dress pants or shorts. The girls could wear dress pants, capri pants, and shorts, skirts or skorts that were no higher than three inches above the knee and of the approved colors. No cargo pockets were permitted at any time. No under clothing could be seen. If clothing was layered, all layers had to of the approved colors and styles. As for footwear, socks must coordinate and no sandals were permitted.
There are several problems with the codes that are now in place. One of the initial goals of the dress code was to make the district look more professional. However, the opposite reaction actually occurred. Students stopped taking pride in their clothing, thus they stopped caring for them as much. If a student encountered an unfortunate stain, it was very likely that they mutter this famous phrase- oh well it is just a pair of school pants. It was not hard to spot someone wearing the red badge of last week's rotini. I was personally guilty of this. One pair of my school pants had a nice, and permanent, pen mark across the right thigh. And yet another pair acquired a mysterious cheese stain from the cheese pretzels they served with lunch. I wore both pair of these pants from ninth grade (when the code was instituted) clear through my senior year. Rotini and cheese stains are not very professional now are they?

The district officials felt that by implementing the dress code, students would focus more on their academics instead of superficial things. They also felt that it would teach the students not to judge someone by their apparel. However, the strict dress code does not accomplish this. I feel that restricting footwear is idiotic. Socks do not change anything about a person. No matter if you have red socks or socks that are purple with red and green polka dots, it doesn't affect your professionalism or your ability to learn. The codes put an even larger emphasis on what someone was wearing then the students actually did in the first place. Only this time it was teachers and aids who worried whether your shirt was red enough or not. In addition to that, the new restrictions did not even ease the social stigma of not having nice clothes. It's not hard to tell the difference between Dollar General Khakis and Gap or American eagle Khakis. Cliques and social stigmas were not a large problem in our district to begin with. If something is not broke then it will only get worse if you try and fix it.

The main reason for going to school is to learn. When a policy takes a student out of the classroom then the policy is flawed. If a dress code violation occurs, the student is made to go home and change. The whole process takes about an hour to an hour and a half out of the six hour school day. In the time that one is gone to change his/her off red shirt, they miss about a class and a half. Doesn't anyone else see the fault in that? My personal run in with the dress code caused me to miss an algebra quiz, a quiz I could not make up. I suffered academically because my shorts were a quarter of an inch too short. I feel that my time would have been better spent taking my quiz rather than someone running me down in the hallway with a ruler.

Some might argue that my district was an isolated incident, but many schools in the area are currently considering or have considered implementing similar codes. My advice to the districts that are considering a code like my alma mater would be to stay away from it. The strict codes do not solve any of the current problems; in fact they actually create new ones. If it were up to me, I would seriously revamp the current code at my former school, and would advise other districts to implement the same changes. The aim of my new code would be to make the students look presentable, while allowing them to have more choices.
The first policy to go would be the color restrictions. What purpose do they actually serve? The district implemented those specific colors to discourage gang related apparel. There were not any gangs in the small rural town I am from! I would allow all solid colors and patterns. I understand the no logo policy and in fact agree with it. The allowance of logos only tempts students to display explicit advertisements. A large brand name logo on clothing is an advertisement of how much it costs. By not allowing this, the designer frenzy will be reduced. In my new policy I would also restrict the bearing of cleavage and the midriff. Sheer clothing would have to be worn with a suitable under layer. Sweatshirts and tee-shirts would be restricted for a more dressed up look.

Fashion experts everywhere argue that accessories make or break any outfit. Under my codes, students would be free to express their individuality through their jewelry, belts, and other garnishments. Expressing your personality through your clothes is a key factor in establishing your identity as a teenager. The current codes restrict your ability to do so.

In addition to the khaki, black, blue, and gray dress pants, I would add jeans and any other color dress pants. Jeans can be just as dressed up as any pair of dress pants. The girls will be allowed to wear shorts, skirts, or skorts that pass the fingertip test. This is a test were the girl puts her arms at her side and the garment cannot pass above her fingertips. I would make a rule stating that no underwear can be seen outside of clothing. With my schools current dress code many of the boys' boxers and girl underwear would protrude out of their clothing. I felt that this was a very unprofessional look for a district that was striving for a professional look.

I would assign certain days where students could dress down. One these days the students would be permitted to wear sweats, school appropriate clothing with logos, and school organization shirts. These days would allow sports teams to wear their uniform jerseys and the regular student body a chance to wear those comfortable sweatpants to school. There would be dress down day every Friday honoring one sport a week. Mid-terms and finals would definitely qualify for dressing down.

No matter how fair the rules are, there will always be those who break them. Under the current system if a student broke the code they were taken out of the classroom. I would keep the students in the classroom at all costs, after all that is why they come to school. The initial punishment would be wearing a school issued top or pants. The clothing would not be used to embarrass the student, but to force all to follow the new codes. If a student consistently broke the rules, then they would be issued a stricter code. Their harsher code would be more like the one my district has now. If they still insisted on breaking the code, then their parents will be called in for a conference with the principal, they will lose their dress down privileges, and an early morning detention will be issued for every subsequent offense.

There are so many positive features to my new dress code, but I am sure that not everyone sees it my way. The students would again take pride in their appearance. Less is more- the famous phrase really applies to this situation. By relaxing the restrictions that are placed on the students, they will be more likely to comply with they new dress code. While complying with my lax code they will still look professional, but they will also be happy. It is a win, win situation.