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School Dress Codes and Uniforms

By Linda Lumsden and Gabriel Miller

Daugherty, Richard. "School Uniforms: Can Voluntary Programs Work? Experimenting in an At-Risk School."

In 2001: A Legal Odyssey. Papers of the 47th Education Law Association Conference, Albuquerque, New Mexico, November 15-17, 2001. Dayton, Ohio: Education Law Association. EA 031 503. Available from: Education Law Association, 300 College Park-0528, Dayton, OH 45469. $1.30 plus $1.00 shipping and handling. 937-229-3589

About 60 percent of schools that adopt uniform policies make them mandatory, says Daugherty. The other 40 percent opt for voluntary wearing of uniforms. While school boards or school officials usually initiate mandatory programs, voluntary programs often originate with parents.

At Traner Middle School in Reno, Nevada, the parent/teacher organization voted to begin a voluntary school uniform program in November 2000. The principal received the board’s permission to proceed, but the "school district did not officially endorse or fund the pilot program," Daugherty reports.

Parents, principal, and staff looked to uniforms as one of several strategies, including a peer-mediation program and a family-focus center, to improve safety and enhance academic and social goals. The school, in a community with high levels of poverty and crime, faced a number of obstacles: low academic achievement, low attendance rates, and high transiency.

Students participated in the voluntary program by selecting their uniform clothing: tops in red or white (the school colors) and khaki-colored pants, skirts, or shorts. Fridays were designated as "casual days," when students could dress (appropriately) as they chose.

To help students afford uniforms, the school solicited donations and a local store offered uniform clothing at a steep discount. "The school also purchased washers and dryers, so students could do their own laundry, and received a grant to transport students staying late for homework or laundry duties," Daugherty writes.

When the program began, the "majority of students and about 70 percent of the faculty and staff wore uniforms, but as the school year ended, participation by students had dropped to about 50 percent," he reports. Although the voluntary program achieved some of its goals, the principal recommended that the school board adopt a policy of mandatory uniforms.

• School Dress Codes and Uniforms
• Do School Uniforms Fit?
  Kerry White discusses arguments for and against school uniforms and summarizes the state of research in this area.
• Dress Codes in the Public Schools: Principals, Policies, and Precepts
  Todd DeMitchell and colleagues report on a survey of principals’ views on dress codes and uniforms, look at sample policies, and outline legal issues related to regulating student dress.
• Evaluation of School Uniform Policy at John Adams and Truman Middle Schools for Albuquerque Public Schools
  Deborah Elder evaluates the implementation and effects of a mandatory uniform policy at two middle schools in an impoverished community.
• School Uniforms: Can Voluntary Programs Work? Experimenting in an At-Risk School
  Richard Daugherty describes the adoption of a voluntary uniform policy at a middle school and the level of compliance over time.
• School Uniforms Redux
  Benjamin Dowling-Sendor examines a recent school uniform case and discusses elements that can help schools survive legal challenges.

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