Dress Codes in The Eustace High School Essay Example

Dress codes are meant for other people, not for the person wearing the clothing. There is a wide variance in what is acceptable in schools across the United States and what is not accepted in these schools. The idea that clothing sends a signal to those around you is the basis for requiring students to wear uniforms or standardized dress, or for students to not wear a particular type of clothing, jewelry, or accessories. Though dress codes do serve a purpose, the Eustace High School dress code should be updated in order to meet the legal, psychological, and cultural needs of students. 

The Eustace High School student handbook forbids male students from wearing earrings; it states``boys may not wear earrings and/or clear spacers. spacers will be treated as earrings” (71). Earrings have been worn as jewelry for over 5,000 years (Nagmabadi). Ear piercings for boys are becoming more common. In fact, one piercer claims that half of his piercing customers are male (Nagmabadi). Many years ago boys that wore earrings were seen in a negative light. This is not the case today; earrings are now accepted by much of American society, as part of the male wardrobe. Furthermore, the boys’ dress code requires no sleeveless shirts.(Eustace 71) and boys may not wear make-up or wear their hair that extends ' past the midpoint of the collar of a dress shirt, below the earlobe, or below the eyebrows' (Eustace 71). Boys cannot wear ponytails or pigtails of any kind. Their faces must be clean-shaven, without beards or mustaches. Girls can wear earrings, but they cannot be “large, obtrusive or distracting. Girls cannot wear clothing that is see-through” (Eustace 71), but neither can boys. Girls cannot wear clothing that shows their bra strap. Dress codes should be equitable, or at least the law thinks so. Title IV is part of the federal civil rights law in the United States, passed in 1972. This law prohibits sex-based discrimination in schools that receive federal money (United States Department of Education).  Eustace I.S.D. does receive federal money, and therefore, should not discriminate, in their dress code, based on sex. Separate rulea for different genders also alienatestransgender students, who are already the target of bullying and harrassment. 

Clothing also serves a psychological need of self-expression, especially among teenagers as most teenagers care what others perceive about them. Restricting clothing choices feels restrictive to teenagers. Teenagers want a reason for the restriction. When the dress code calls for shorts that are no more than 4 inches above the knee, and the volleyball players’ spandex is well above the 4 inch mark, teenagers feel that the rules are inconsistent. Cheerleaders wear short skirts, but non-athletes cannot wear short skirts. These inconsistencies provide room for teenagers to question authority. The dress code can lead to social exclusion for students in a time of their lives when students should be encouraged to be social, to talk to their peers, and engage in activities. Students who violate the dress code by wearing shorts that are too short or having hair that is too long end up in in-school-suspension or could be suspended from school. Alienating these students from other students, the classroom, and activities can make students feel isolated and alone (Perry 2017).

Some students want to wear their hair a certain way or wear a particular type of clothing because it is associated with their culture. The Eustace I.S.D. the dress code does not allow dreadlocks. Dreadlocks are often worn by those of African descent. Banning these hairstyles actually exclude students in a social setting (Banks, 2020).  There is some evidence that banning these hairstyles can contribute to racial inequality. The dress code socially and symbolically punish these students. In 2020, De’Andre Arnold received a substantial amount of  media attention over his suspension from his Texas high school after he refused to cut his dreadlocks in response to the school's dress code (Diaz & Fortin, 2020).  In fact, this “hair discrimination” , or the different treatment of people based on their race, has been the subject of several lawsuits in the state of Texas.

Requiring students to wear clothing that covers particular areas, closed-toed shoes for safety, and prohibiting clothing that depicts vulgar, obscene, or threatening language or pictures is a reasonable approach to the dress code problem. The dress code rules should be legally equitable, based on common sense, and encouraged socially, while affirming the students’ culture.  The Eustace I.S.D. dress code should be updated to meet the needs of the students of 2021.