“Gray Areas” of Dress Code May Lead to Uniform
By Annie Murphy
Dominican's feeder schools, such as our neighbor St. Monica, wear uniforms such as this.
Reflecting back on the year so far, one of the major problems occurring within Dominican has been enforcing dress code. Therefore, a new idea has been floating around the faculty for a short time. The idea is to create uniforms for Dominican hopefully by next year. The design, cost, and regulations are still very unclear, and the Dean of Students, Mr. Brian Geittmann, requests input from the students.
“This is all completely up in the air; no decisions have been made,” explained Geittmann. Geittmann has been handling most of the dress code violations, so he has had the most impact on this idea so far. First, he plans to gather input from the students, parents, and faculty. Then, after analyzing the information, he plans to look into other private schools in the area with uniforms. After examining their rules and regulations, a draft of a proposal would then be created for Dominican. “The general frustration level with dress code on parents, students, and the administration brought the idea to the forefront,” stated Geittmann.
Many problems erupting inside Dominican regarding the current dress code led to this new idea. “Everyone can agree that the current dress code is harder for young ladies to be in compliance with than young men. The nuisance of not incorporating new fashion trends leads to a gray area,” Geittmann sympathizes. “This leads to the administration having to interpret the new fashions, like leggings and yoga pants. Students see them as a dress pant because it has pockets and belt loops, but the teachers see it as inappropriate for class.”
This process is prepared to begin after Christmas. “We will then look into where and how to gather all of the information necessary,” stated Geittmann. One way he is hoping to gather input* is through either surveys, where you can express your “honest, anonymous opinion,” or meetings with the school board. One important part of this process is analyzing the costs and benefits. “For example, a family with a junior student who has been buying clothes in dress code for the past three years now has to switch to uniforms, we need their opinions,” expressed Geittmann. If it ends up following through, the uniform definitely will not be instated until next year at the earliest.
Another important part of this idea is if it will influence the tuition. Geittmann states, “No, I don’t believe that it will influence that one way or another. However, that is not in my realm of power.” Whether or not tuition would be effected could potentially effect the opinion of parents and students, which is an issue that still needs to be addressed.
Overall, the student’s opinion will make a huge impact on the final decision. The way Geittmann sees it, is that there are three parties involved in this situation; parents, students, and faculty. “We need everyone to be on the same page in order for this to be successful.”
No proper outline of what the uniforms will look like has been created, however Geittmann has his own image of how he would like them to be. “We want the student’s opinion on this matter, but I am picturing the gentlemen in khakis, collared shirts with the shirt tucked in, and I would like to see them in belts. The girls would also receive this option, but in addition we would also have to come to a resolution on what type of skirt to offer, such as the length, design and fabric… I have no knowledge on skirts,” Geittmann stated. However, the skirts would be relevant to those worn in grade schools like Saint Monica, Holy Family, and Saint Roberts. A possibility of a hood-less sweatshirt was also mentioned. The whole idea of a uniform leads to conflicts with the college spirit wear and spirit wear on Fridays. Yet Geittmann believes “all the pieces will eventually fall into place.”
Geittmann was happy to break this new idea out for the student’s to participate in. He asks for students to leave comments regarding their opinion on the subject at hand. Although this idea has not reached the board yet, and is still just being “floated around,” Geittmann believes it could truly be successful in benefiting the next school year. “I initially thought the student body would be against it, but as more are finding out about it I’m surprised at how interested the students are at exploring the possibility… I now believe we could make the transition by next year,” states Geittmann. It is up to the students to express their opinions, and the input from the Dominican community will directly effect the next school year.
*Editor note: To leave input, vote in our poll or comment below. To find out how to comment and vote, go here: http://dhsknightlynews.com/content2/?p=775
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As a recent alumni I believe that the dress code is fine the way it is, it simply needs to be followed by students and enforced strictly by faculty. I believe that the seniors should still be allowed to wear the college wear on Monday’s and spirit wear should be allowed by all on Friday’s. But to create a uniform, in my opinion, would be just crazy. If the uniform is put in place then there would need to be a uniform for faculty as well. If Dominican is a college prep and life prep high school then our policies should reflect that of the “real world.”
I am going to college to become a high school teacher and although teachers are told to dress professionally there is no “uniform” it is simply a dress code. I believe that if Dominican is a life prep enviornment then they should reflect that in their policies. The students should just have to dress “professionally” and I believe that the current dress code, if enforced, will allow the students to dress in a way that prepares them for a “real world” work enviornment, such as being a teacher.
I wouldn’t have had a problem with uniforms. I like Geitmann’s idea of khaki’s, white shirts tucked in, and a belt. I’d also add a tie and a specific kind of shoe. I’d also agree that leggings are inappropriate for school. I think that this is a good step for DHS especially because we are a college prep school.
To comment on the above statements: a high school teacher does not have a uniform, but I think you can trust their judgements to dress professionally better than you can trust a high school kid to follow a dress code. Maybe having a uniform for the faculty wouldn’t be a bad idea either, if the students really feel like that. Also, I feel that Dominican should be held to a higher standard than that of the “real world”. Many professionals still wear suits to work, but overall, I think society is lax in attire and that we are lazy.
Dominican has a diverse background of students and sometimes kids can’t afford the newest trends or styles. Uniforms would make everyone equal in terms of social acceptance based on fashion. I don’t if that’s always the case but it is an issue to bring up.
Uniforms are not as crazy as people think. If the school had uniforms I honestly see nothing wrong with that. I came from a middle school with uniforms and I believe it solved a lot of the “my clothes are better than yours” drama that goes on in middle school and yes that STILL goes on in high school. We spend too much time on petty dress code violations why don’t we just get a uniforms, I’m not talking about just ONE item either. We could have a mix a plaid skirts, blazers and polos. If your clothes is the biggest problem in your life and what you wear to high school bothers you, then you probably aren’t even ready for the real world.
And no uniforms don’t take away from a student’s individuality either. Lots of students go to uniform schools and they aren’t bland and boring either. So in my opinion uniforms aren’t that bad.
I would like to congratulate Miss Murphy for a well done piece. I would also like to encourage students to use the forum set up by the Knightly News staff to express mature opinions that represent the view points of our current Dominican High School students. I hope that we can maintain positive communication on this topic which will greatly assist me and Mr. Foy as we move forward in this project. I thank you in advance for your time and input on this topic. Merry Christmas.
great article, i agree that uniforms would benefit the school and would create a less stressful morning and also i can save money on clothes i would never wear outside of school, and spend it on things i enjoy instead. definitley support the uniforms!
dress code has become such an issue it sometimes has a bad effect on the learning environment rather than it benefits. uniforms seem like the only solution to be sure everyone is equal instead of some getting in trouble while others get away with being out of dress code
First of all, uniforms aren’t always cheap and when they are they are not typically the best of quality. Simply having shirts and pants is one thing, but the addition of blazers, shoes, ties, and other things will really add up the costs to an already large tuition.
To address the previous comment by anonymous:
You would wear a uniform outside of school? Not to cause offense, but i find it very difficult to believe that anyone would wear a uniform outside of its required area — it seems to me that forcing a uniform upon the students would be nothing but a financial burden and a waste of money for clothes that will more than likely not be worn outside of Dominican.
I think it is safe to say that a large portion of Dominican’s students come from previous private education from schools that had strict uniforms and dress code policies. I have no exact numbers, but anyone I have talked to that went to a school with uniforms says they hated them. hate might not be the most appropriate word because yes, a uniform would be convenient and potentially more manageable in the sense that it would be easier to enforce, but i HIGHLY doubt that imposing a uniform would result in much less disregard for its policy. I believe students would simply find loopholes, or just outright not abide by it (much like it is now) only with greater frustration.
There have been studies (apparently — i haven’t looked into it but i would believe it) that show students that dress more professionally and less casually tend to do better in school. I can see the truth to that, but at the same time I know that is not always the case. I for one am MUCH more productive in casual clothing — i find that even the current dress code restricts some of my focus but i’m not complaining. Why should people that benefit from a more lax dress code be punished for no reason? If some people function better in more professional attire let them wear it, but don’t force everybody to throw down their individuality for them.
Yes, having a uniform would greatly deter individuality at Dominican. I really don’t see a counter argument for that. Restricting the clothing that people are allowed to wear, and forcing them all to wear the same, if not very similar clothes seems like it would certainly take away from individuality. Self expression is one of the freedoms granted in America, our current dress code appropriately (for a learning environment) restricts those rights. I wish they were more lax, but we can’t have everything. Why should the last bit of “spirit” left be taken away only to be replaced by a uniform that will, without a doubt, yield and incredibly amount of complaints — mostly from students, but as Mr. Geittmann stated, the opinion of the students matters so lets not shut it out.
Personaly, having uniform will be a hassel for both students and parents, giving the fact that we have spent a great deal of money for school clothes . That would be a waste of time and money. If the dress code violations are becoming too great of a problem then the rules should be inforced more, but uniforms are not the solution.
Why fix what doesn’t need fixing. Dominican High School is a High School, not a business institution. Students will get detentions for dress code violations with or with out uniforms. There are always loopholes. Teenagers are crafty they will find a way around any rule. The perfect student body does not exist. If uniforms are enforced students will find something else to pick on others for. Taking away a students right to dress the way they want is limiting their creativity. No matter how you look at it. Last year when the faculty was rather lax, many people came to school out of dress code. Some students did wear rather outrageous things however the majority was fine. People would come to school with long sleeve shirts without collars and still looked nice.
On the contrary I would like to commend Mr. Geittmann and the rest of the faculty for cracking down this year. The dress code needs to be enforced but uniforms are a step too far. I can’t see myself coming from almost 10 years of wearing uniforms and finally being excited to express myself through my clothing. To have that taken away, would not make me happy. I couldn’t see myself at Dominican wearing a uniform. I wouldn’t do it. Furthermore, administration should think of the effects that this change would have on incoming freshman. More eighth graders would not be attracted to a school with uniforms.
If parents have a problem with the dress code maybe they should pay more attention to the way that their kids dress, and shouldn’t worry themselves with other people’s children.
I think that uniform idea is better than all of these other restrictions. It would benefit in a lot of ways like tess mentioned it would make everyone equal instead of only a couple of people getting in trouble and the rest getting away with it. The uniform would aslo be a good idea because it would save a lot of money, you could basically just buy fives of everything, and then you could use money that you would have spent on dress code pants,..on jeans and no collared shirts!! I just wish we would have had this idea a long time ago. My only concern with the uniform thing would be how they would look, because there are some not so nice looking uniforms out there.. but there are some nice ones you just have to look. And like anon said there could be a variety of skirts and for logical they could keep it simple and not make the uniform to be ties and blazers those could just be like accessories.
While creating a uniform to solve the problems that have arisen from the dress code is a creative solution, the administration should take into account the ideas of the student body. It’s no secret that the students are upset, I’ve seen the freaked out facebook statuses about the idea of a uniform, and at this point, many students still wish for the old dress code, the one that let us wear spirt wear everyday. As the greatest portion of the school, the students should have some say in this issue.
Making us wear a uniform might not solve the problem. We all have a copy of the dress code in our handbooks, we all know the consequences of breaking dress code. Changing the dress code to a uniform won’t solve the problem, just make it harder to break. Harder, but not impossible. Dominican says they are preparing us for the real world, but in the real world, we have to face the consequences of our actions. We break the dress code, we get a citation. Sure there would be less citations written if we had a uniform, but would that really help us learn about cause and effect?
Also, there is the issue of money. I went to a uniformed grade school, and the uniforms aren’t cheap. With a dress code, there is a chance that we might wear the clothes when we aren’t in school. But who would really wear a uniform outside of school? And for the upper classmen, who would just be buying an expensive uniform for one or two years, only to never wear it again doesn’t seem like a smart idea.
I came from a background of public middle and elementary schools prior to my time at Dominican and in response to the comment from JWolf and Anon I must disagree with the idea that DHS should go to uniforms because it makes everyone equal. If we are preparing our 9-12 graders for the “real” world or even just any part of the rest of their lives then they will quickley realize that no part of how the public dresses is quote “equal.” I am now in college and the idea that other people care how you dress is obsurd. As long as you don’t look like a slob, which the current dress code if followed and enforced would easily take care of, then no one cares.
All through my time at Dominican i just wore khaki’s and a collered shirt just about every day, I see nothing in that, or in the current dress code, that would cause “jelousy” or a discrepancy in anyones ability to purchuse the clothes nessescary to fit that dress code.
Lastely, I have to completly agree with “Just another studen’t's” last paragraph where he/she says that “there is the issue of money…the uniforms aren’t cheap. With the dress code there is a chance we might wear the clothes when we aren’t in school. But who would really wear a uniform outside of school?”
If the issue is truely money then shouldn’t our parents be spending the money on something that we would be able to use outside of school and in a further work enviornment. I know many people who are in the workforce where the appropriate attire is khakis and collared shirts. If the issue is money then shouldn’t it be spent wisely, and not in a uniform which is a one place one time wear?
good article annie
For those that argue a uniform limits individuality and creativity, doesn’t the dress code do the same thing. Students do not have complete freedom in choosing what to wear to school each day. I don’t think going from a dress code to a uniform is that much of a stretch.
The uniforms being proposed, khaki’s and a white shirt, are basic pieces of clothing and can be easily worn outside of school without being recognized as part of a uniform. Nate, you said you wore khaki’s and a collared shirt almost everyday to school. Isn’t that pretty much the uniform already? Just replace your collared shirts with a white one.
I’ve been in college for four years now and the idea that other people care how you dress is not absurd. People make judgements about what you wear just seeing you across the campus. I think dressing in khaki’s and a dress shirt would always create a good impression.
We are all expected to ‘dress up’ for a job interview, and depending on the job, everyday to work. We are preparing these young people to go out into the ‘real world’ and get a job, so why do we lessen these expectations for them when they come to school.
I am part of the majority of students who came from schools with a uniform and I think uniforms at Dominican is uncalled for. I understand that the Dress Code is hard for teachers to enforce, but i do not believe that uniforms are the answer. As previously stated, they tend to be expensive, and they are not crafted from the best materials. They are not the best clothes to be wearing in the cold, and they are not very comfortable at all.
I also agree with the previously stated comment from Just Another Student, that “Teens are going to break the policy either way.” I point out the fact that most teens are rebellious, enforce a uniform and teachers may begin to see students modify said uniforms or find a way to deviate from the intended result.
I disagree With John Wolf, true, dress code does does limit one’s creativity to a certain extent, however a uniform limits it more than the dress code. Sure Nate might have worn Khaki’s and a polo shirt but not all of us did. Take me for example, when i walked the halls of Dominican, i wore black everyday, not because i was emo, goth, or any of the other stereotypes that people often think of as wearing the color all the time, but rather, black was simply my favorite color. The uniforms in question would abolish this form of expression, as well as a few others.
One of the reasons I chose to come to Dominican high school was to escape the weight of a uniform.
For me, and for many others, Dress code is fine the way it is. It allows for someone to feel casual in clothes that look professional, as Nate stated, and whatever mindset that is trying to be taught with uniforms could just as easily be taught with dress code.
Great article annie, uniforms wold be a great instillation to dominican. Except maybe when its warmer in our school because of the fact there’s no a/c and everyone will want to wear shorts. But uniforms take away the nagging dress code citation that many students receive and provide dominican with a more suitable look that compares to other private schools.
I don’t think seniors should have much say in this , having the fact that they are leaving the school. Also if you are getting dress code violations, that is your fault for not following the rules, so everyone shouldnt face the consequences of having a uniform just because you chose not to wear appropiate clothing .
I don’t think uniforms are necessary at Dominican. This has been a tough year to enforce the dress code because it wasn’t really enforced for the past few years. Students got used to getting away with not wearing a collar or wearing leggings or whatever. As long as the administration makes it clear that the dress code NEEDS to be followed…no exceptions…and continues to strictly enforce it, I see no reason why uniforms are needed.
Also, as a member of student council, I would encourage students who are upset about a certain piece of the dress code to talk to a member of their class council. For example, the sophomores are currently putting together a proposal to allow sweaters to be worn without a collar if the neckline is no lower than the collar bone. That’s what your student council is here for…student affairs and issues!! Talk to them and they will bring your suggestions to administration. So far, this administration has been good at listening to students and considering their ideas.
Agree with Marissa, all of you seniors shouldn’t even be talking because your leaving anyways so whatever you say shouldn’t count! Getting uniforms is not only going to affect the students but also the school….think about it REALLY good Geittmann!!
NO! NO! NO! Geittmann I honestly think that you are wasting your TIME on the uniform dress code!!!! ok…yeah A LOT of people violate the dress code from right now, but if we get uniforms that is NOT going to stop people from violating the dress code! seriously! I also heard that the tuition is going to go up and that is going to cause problems for some people on paying, and you are going to loose students(no offense) and with the uniform thing you are going to loose even MORE!! people like me are TIRED from uniforms! i just graduated from a school that uses uniform and now in high school we have yo wear uniforms?…
if students are going to wear uniforms then the TEACHERS & STAFF have to do it too!!! that’s a fair “game” and if you guys don’t like that idea imagine us!!!!!
like marissa said UNIFORMS IS NOT THE ANSWER!!
First off, go ANNIE! The was a great article.
I do not think that Dominican should have a uniform because, being a current student at Dominican, the dress code was one of the reason i wanted to attend Dominican in the first place. Everyday, Dominican students find different ways to get around he dress code, and they get punished if caught. But the thing is, they are not trying to be awful people, trying to disobey the school. They look just as appropriate for the school day and many of the students who are fully in dress code, and even better than some.
Enforcing a uniform would cause a hostile learning environment if the students did not want a uniform. Being forced to wear a uniform everyday to school would force the student to be angry coming to school. Even though there is hostility now at Dominican with the dress code, that is not because everyone it trying to disobey and be out of dress code. The problem now is that the teachers do not enforce the dress code equally. There would be less dress code citations if they enforced the dress code equal because that gives students the false idea that if one person is able to get away with wearing something , then they can, yet they are the one that gets the punishment. There is just a problem in consistency and if that problem was changed, then the dress code citation problem would go way down.
Enforcing a uniform does take away part of a students individuality. Just because Nate wore khakis and a polo everyday, does not mean that he wore the same colored polo, everyday. I am sure he changed it up because he wanted to that day or because he liked the shirt. Students can look very well put together in the current dress code, and quite frankly, uniforms can look sloppy and as others were saying, the students will find ways to get around it. They will do this because they will be angry with the fact that they were put in the uniform in the first place. Your clothing is a form of expression. The way you feel like looking everyday comes from your mind. I have plenty of dress code appropriate clothing that i wear out of school. This helps me to look better outside of school because i know that the shirt I am putting on is appropriate in the school. A uniform is going too far. If the administration wants a change from the students, they have to realize that the students are not the only problem. Honestly, if they administration was more consistent, then the students would get less dress code citations and there would be a large decrease with the problem.
Even though the current dress code does restrict from a students individuality, like John W said, there are ways to express yourself through your clothing that is appropriate for the school day. Getting a uniform would take away an last bit of freedom and expression that the students have. It would force students to wear the exact same thing and overall be unhappy.
We already pay a LARGE amount of money to attend Dominican every year, and adding another cost would be a burden, finically, on families. Especially if they want to get a nice, well put together uniform, since that is what they want their students to look like everyday, that can become very costly. That can push away new incoming freshman families who might not be able to afford a uniform. Dominican’s incoming freshman numbers have already been down, and enforcing a uniform would not help.
Dominican is trying to help get students ready for college and the rest of their lives. Enforcing a uniform only pushes a student further away from that goal.