Summary

The website content reflects on the author's personal experience with school uniforms, detailing the transition from a liberal dress code to a strict uniform policy in a Catholic high school during the 1980s and its impact on self-identity and fashion choices post-graduation.

Abstract

The author begins by reminiscing about the absence of uniforms in their early school years, which drastically changed upon entering high school in 1979. Initially, the dress code was lenient, allowing for personal expression within broad guidelines. However, the introduction of a full uniform in 1980, consisting of specific gray pants, a white button-down shirt, and a burgundy vest, marked a significant shift. The school's rationale for implementing the uniform policy was to reduce time spent on clothing decisions, promote equality among students from various economic backgrounds, and encourage valuing character over material possessions. Despite these intentions, the author points out the unintended consequences of uniforms on students' self-identity and individuality during a formative period in their lives. The article concludes with the author's observation that the aversion to uniform-related clothing can persist into adulthood, affecting wardrobe choices for years after graduation.

Opinions

The author suggests that the school uniform policy, while intended to prepare students for college and focus on academics, may have inadvertently stifled individual expression and caused lasting resentment towards certain clothing items.
There is a hint of criticism towards the school's dress code enforcement, which seemed to swiftly ban any emerging fashion trends among students.
The author believes that the uniform policy, particularly in a Catholic school setting, aimed to de-emphasize the importance of material goods and promote a culture of valuing actions over appearances.
The article conveys a personal opinion that the uniform policy had a lasting impact on the author's fashion choices, leading to an avoidance of certain colors and styles for many years after graduating.
The author implies that the uniform policy, despite its potential benefits, may have caused a form of psychological aversion, making formerly mandated clothing items undesirable well into adulthood.
There is an underlying sentiment that the freedom to

Scarred by School Uniforms

How can you be an individual when you look like everyone else?

When I attended grammar school and middle school, there was no uniform required. That all changed in 1979 when I started high school.

Coming from chaos and freedom

My high school was coming out of the free-wheeling 60s and 70s when they’d had no uniform and a very forward-thinking educational format. They believed their role was to get kids ready to be on their own in college and succeed in a more open-ended environment.

The uniform guidelines of the school matched this liberal attitude. As long as you wore “appropriate” clothing (no jeans, no flip-flops, no muscle shirts), and the pants or skirt were some shade of gray, you were good.

It was a Catholic high school, and the nuns ran a tight ship, so we didn’t have too many rebels and trouble makers. The few we had, though, stretched the definition of “gray” to the darkest charcoal.

The colorful 80s — not in our school

This all changed in the 80s. Specifically 1980, my sophomore year. That was the first year that students had to wear a full uniform. Not just any gray pants, but specific gray uniform pants. A white button-down shirt with the school logo on it. And a burgundy vest, also with the school logo on it. (This could be replaced by a burgundy logo sweater during the cold weather.)

Fortunately, this was just for the incoming freshmen. Everyone else was allowed to continue wearing the “any shade and style as long as it’s gray” uniform we’d started school with. But the dress code continued to nibble away at our freedoms.

Preppy turtlenecks were becoming popular, either worn alone or under a sweater. Clingy chenille sweaters in bright colors were also trendy. The dress code quickly put a stop to that. All turtlenecks had to be worn under a button-down dress shirt. All sweaters had to be worn over a button-down dress shirt.

It seemed that every fashion trend had no sooner appeared in our school than the dress code fashion police would outlaw it.

Wooden clogs? Outlawed. Leggings? Absolutely not. Leg warmers? Only on the way to or from school, and left in your locker the rest of the time.

The boys didn’t get a free pass, either. If it was worn by a rapper or rock musician, they probably weren’t allowed to wear it.

Why a uniform?

What was the purpose of a school uniform? How did it help to prepare us for life on our own in college?

The official party line was that high school students spent an inordinate amount of time on their clothes. If they had to wear uniforms, that time could be devoted to their studies.

A secondary benefit of the uniform policy was that it leveled the playing field between students from different income brackets. It’s not as obvious that you’re wearing your older sibling’s outgrown clothes when they look just like the clothes everyone else is wearing.

I suspect, it being a Catholic school, that they were also trying to convince students that material goods are not that important. And that students should learn to value each other based on actions, not appearances.

Better academic performance, greater self-esteem, and paying attention to what truly matters are all useful for students going on to college.

The hidden damage revealed

There’s one big downside to wearing a uniform, especially in middle school and high school. That’s the age when you’re trying to figure out who you are, and what your self-identity is going to be for much of the rest of your life. And one easy way to express self-identity is through clothing.

If you’re denied the ability to express yourself through your clothing choices, you will feel resentment. That resentment gets transferred, not to the school making you wear the uniform, but to the uniform itself.

By the time you graduate, you will come to loathe the uniform, whatever it may be. And for decades afterward, you will refuse to include it in your wardrobe. After all, your self-identity is no longer “high school student”, so why would you wear the clothes that brand you as one?

I was well into my 30s before I could consider wearing gray pants again. Do you know what I wore as a neutral base color instead? Khaki! Not only is the beige family of colors synonymous with boring, but I have entirely the wrong skin tone to look good in it. I actually look great in cool colors, like gray.

Other women, I’ve spoken to who wore school uniforms said they also excised valuable colors or patterns from their wardrobes until their 30s. They refused to wear navy blue or avoided anything in plaid.

Final thoughts

My high school still has a uniform, although it has changed with the times. The current uniform still features gray pants and skirts, but they’re slightly more flattering in cut. Students can choose either a short-sleeve or long-sleeve white polo, rather than a button-down shirt. And the hideous burgundy vests have been replaced with 1/4 zip navy fleece.

The dress code police are still on the ball, making sure students don’t show any signs of originality such as wearing long-sleeved t-shirts underneath the short-sleeved polo shirts. And they certainly aren’t allowed to wear patterned socks, or shoes in any color other than black.

I suspect that these students will graduate, and promptly fill their drawers with wildly patterned socks. Their closets will be filled with shoes in every possible shade (except black). Their wardrobes will include nothing in either gray or navy blue.

By the time they’re in their 30s, they’ll finally be able to objectively consider clothing in these colors. And, like me, they may discover those shades actually look good on them, and slowly transition their wardrobe to include more and more of them.

Although, if this is the worst mental and emotional trauma they suffer in high school, they’re probably doing pretty good. And the school has achieved its goal of getting its students ready for life on their own. Even if they had to wear a uniform to do it.