Neil Dua ’14: The flexibility of the female dress codes permits girls to wear various tops, sweaters, shoes, and accessories without punishment or recognition from faculty members. In order to incorporate professionalism in conjunction with the values of Episcopal Academy, the female student dress code should be restricted and concrete with standards similar to the male dress code.
Episcopal Academy is an institution full of traditions and values, represented through the dress code. Dean of the Class of 2013, Sarah Baker ’01, stated, “I am not in this for rules for the sake of rules, rather, rules that set a standard for the sake of values.” Despite the fact that these values can be described under the idea of professionalism, Jackson Collins, Dean of the Class of 2014, declared, “It is questionable if these values are followed by both men and women at the academy.”
Baker noted, “The dress code is effective in the sense that it presents our students in a way that we are business like.” Although presentable, the men are deprived of ways to express their sense of style by restrictive rules of the dress code that do not necessarily break the traditions and values of our school. These constraints include, but are not limited to, only blue and white oxford style shirts and black or brown shoes. Both restrictions can be met while still presenting oneself in a professional manner, but sacrifice any form of style and personality. On top of this, female students have the ability to essentially wear a wide variety of blouses, sweaters, and shoes with little to no restrictions.
Baker admitted, “Boys have it much more difficult than the girls do.” The girls loosely enforced dress code which enables them to wear sneakers, Uggs, polo shirts, and even sweatpants under their skirts during the winter. These styles are generally considered unprofessional. Instead of loosening the men’s dress code, which Collins noted, “This could lead us down a slippery slope,” there should be a more professional approach from the women of our school.
When asked about the reasoning for the prohibition of flannels and hooded sweatshirts, Baker stated that “total prohibition was necessary since the rules would be too difficult to enforce with different circumstances.” Since this a fair statement, why haven’t more restrictions been placed on the women’s dress code since all of the apparel stated above for women are not considered “professional” and could potentially be hard for teachers to enforce?
Overall, Episcopal Academy has been true to its values by preparing men to dress professionally while allowing them to express themselves legally through the choice of ties, bow ties, and other numerous accessories. However, student council needs to make this topic a priority either to loosen the restrictions on the men’s dress code or to apply this theme of professionalism to the women’s apparel to make it fair for all students and easier to enforce for teachers.