Courtney Carlson
Staff Writer
Amongst bad hair days, failed tests, and messy break-ups, dress cuts are one of the parts of high school that make teenagers full of angst.
This distress would be eliminated if administrators altered their view of what is school appropriate so that it correlated with the current fashion industry.
One would think, with their sky-high self confidence, that a minor wardrobe dysfunction wouldn’t bother high schoolers. But these mishaps cause distress, especially once the order is given to wear a used and seemingly unwashed P.E. uniform for the rest of the day.
Such negative outcomes for wearing inappropriate clothing should deter students from doing so, but the action continues. Every year announcements, emails and other reminders are sent out to warn students about impending dress cuts, but this seems to be in vain.
While administrators believe these dress code violations are the fault of students, perhaps the blame should be placed elsewhere. Finding wearable shorts, dresses, or skirts is extremely difficult.
Since most stores don’t carry school-appropriate clothing, maybe the fashion industry is responsible.
Target, Forever 21, Nordstrom, and many other stores are guilty of this. Despite having variety in color or style, they offer only jeans or “booty shorts.”
Avoiding a dress cut may be hard with jeans, too, because administrators can deem them inappropriate because of rips on the legs or for being too tight.
Shirts come in more varieties, but also can mean a dress cut. Tops that fall over or expose the shoulder, are sheer, or have thin straps are all off limits. This means that students need to cover up their blouses with a jacket, even on a hot day.
It’s unfair to expect students to adhere to a dress code that isn’t easy to follow. If stores don’t sell school-appropriate clothing, then where are students supposed to buy it?
The clothing that most students wear isn’t distracting or inappropriate like the dress code would define it. If clothing is comfortable and not too revealing, then students shouldn’t get in trouble for wearing it.
Administrators shouldn’t have to send so many kids to the office for dress code violations. Instead, they should consider the evolution of fashion and how that affects how their students dress.
The dress code deserves to be reevaluated, to save time for both staff and students.
Instead of requiring shorts to reach a student’s fingertips, they should allow bottoms that reach the thumb of the student. This is still an appropriate length and is more reasonable in consideration of what is sold in stores.
Tank tops should also be permitted, even when the straps are less than two finger lengths wide. Shoulder-revealing shirts such as halter tops shouldn’t be considered inappropriate. Is seeing someone’s shoulder’s that taboo?
While students should have guidelines of what clothing is school-appropriate, these rules should reflect what is sold in stores. Administrators shouldn’t have to force students into P.E. clothes because of a too-strict regulation. Instead they should alter the dress code, to help the whole school.
