This document has been formatted for printing from your browser from the Web site of the Illinois Association of School Boards.

COPYRIGHT NOTICE -- This document is © copyrighted by the Illinois Association of School Boards. IASB hereby grants to school districts and other Internet users the right to download, print and reproduce this document provided that (a) the Illinois Association of School Boards is noted as publisher and copyright holder of the document and (b) any reproductions of this document are disseminated without charge and not used for any commercial purpose.

Illinois School Board Journal
July/August 2002

Making a case for student uniforms

by Sherwood C. Dees

Sherwood C. Dees is superintendent of Limestone Community High School District 310 in Bartonville, Illinois.

As one of its goals for 2000-01, the Board of Education of Limestone Community High School District 310 wanted to examine the issue of school uniforms. Limestone is an 1,100-student, middle class Central Illinois high school just outside Peoria.

As superintendent, I researched 37 articles or abstracts of articles published in the 1990s dealing with school uniforms and reported to the school board. The board then debated the topic over the winter and surveyed the faculty for its opinions. Although genuinely interested in the concept of school uniforms, the board decided to not adopt a policy requiring uniforms for the next school year. But the information collected could help other boards as they debate uniform and dress code policies.

School uniforms are not new. They have been required in non-public schools as long as those schools have existed. However, the requirement of uniforms in a public school setting is new.

The first significant, large-scale requirement of school uniforms was enacted for the 1994-95 school year in the Long Beach (California) Unified School District, where more than 72,000 students are required to wear uniforms. Although most of these are elementary schools, some are middle schools. One secondary school in the Long Beach system, Wilson Classical High School, recently started requiring uniforms. This 3,580-student magnet school has a free/reduced lunch eligibility of 48.4 percent.

Since the bold inception of school uniforms by Long Beach, many other urban school districts have followed their lead. Today, school districts in Dade County, Florida; Baltimore, Maryland; Norfolk, Virginia; Oakland, California; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Charleston, South Carolina; and New York City have some type of school uniform requirement. In addition, individual schools in Detroit, Phoenix and St. Louis require uniforms.

The rash of highly publicized school violence incidents in the late 1990s (Columbine, Colorado; Paducah, Kentucky; Thurston, Washington; and Conyers, Georgia) generated increased interest in school uniforms both from parents and school officials. One of the predominant reasons cited for implementing a school uniform policy is student safety. School officials feel uniforms not only make identification of intruders easier, but they cite improved school climate issues as well.

Most court cases challenging the requirement of school uniforms have ruled in favor of the school district, particularly when the district could establish that school crime rates and incidences of gang violence were high. In other words, school districts could not arbitrarily institute school uniform policies without a valid reason.

The most solid legal challenge to school uniforms came in 1997 from Phoenix Elementary School District No.1 v. Green. In this case, two students challenged the uniform rule because their parents were told that the students had to conform to the policy or the students would be transferred to another school without a school uniform policy. One student wore an American flag shirt and the other student wore a shirt depicting Jesus Christ. The court's support of the school uniform policy was based on two factors: the court said the policy was "reasonably related to the pedagogical purpose of the school" and students had other methods of free expression available to them, including jewelry and buttons.

Student safety is the number one reason cited by school officials who seek school uniform policies. Other reasons include:

• Decreasing violence and theft, even threatening situations, among students over designer clothing or expensive sneakers.
• Helping prevent gang members from wearing gang colors and insignia at school.
• Instilling students with discipline and a sense of pride in their school by creating a feeling of camaraderie, unity and school pride within the student body.
• Helping parents and students resist peer pressure to purchase and wear designer or expensive clothing, thereby reducing stress between parents and students over clothing purchase issues and the battle of "What to wear?" every morning.
• Helping students concentrate on schoolwork by eliminating bizarre or revealing clothes, or feelings of jealousy or despair of students who cannot purchase and wear trendy, brand-name outfits.
• Helping school officials and police officers recognize intruders who enter or hang around the school.
• Saving money on clothing purchases.
• Elimination of competition between students based on income.
• Creation of positive interaction between different students due to the elimination of income-revealing symbols
• Realization by students that "clothes do not make the man."
• Less time spent preparing for school in the morning.
• An increased pride in each student about appearance.

Most of these reasons fall into the category of improved school climate.

Not surprisingly, most parents tend to support school uniform policies. The Long Beach board required a two-thirds approval rating on a parental survey before considering adoption of a school uniform policy. Even after its first year of implementation, Long Beach parent support continued to be strong, with 75 percent of the surveyed parents in favor of the school uniform policy.

Woods and Ogletree (1992) reported that 77 percent of parents surveyed in Chicago felt peers pressured their children over clothing worn to school. Of those same parents, 87 percent felt a school uniform policy would eliminate that clothing competition.

The cost of school uniforms was also a factor in parent support. Most school districts restrict their uniform requirement to a standard color pants or skirt and a white shirt or blouse. Some restrict logos of any kind, while others permit school logos on shirts and blouses. With these streamlined clothing choices, most parents report that an entire school uniform costs less than a single, designer label pair of jeans.

The Long Beach uniforms cost $70 to $90 per year for a set of three grade-school sized outfits in 1996. All districts with school uniform requirements have financial assistance available to indigent families. Most of this financial assistance comes from service organizations within the district. In Long Beach, this financial assistance amounted to $160,000 for its 58,500 K-8 student population with 60 percent on free or reduced lunches.

All school districts that have school uniform policies also have "opt out" clauses. Parents may petition the school to not require their student to follow the school's uniform dress code. Experience has shown that only a very small percentage actually "opt out." Less than 1 percent of the Long Beach students applied for a waiver when the policy took effect.

When a school uniform requirement is imposed, not following it makes the regularly dressed student feel out of place with his peers and creates unwarranted attention to what now is the nonconformist. This is the opposite of the current situation in which some students try to intentionally draw attention by wearing bizarre colors, stylish brand names or torn-up clothes to school.

Compliance with uniform requirements is generally a stair-step approach. When a student's dress does not conform to the uniform policy, conferences with the student and parent are usually required prior to any punitive action. The conferences provide an opportunity for school officials to explain the benefits of school uniforms to students and parents, to assess the financial condition of the student's family, to offer the waiver application to exempt a student from the requirement and to attempt to solicit parent support. Only after failure of these attempts is disciplinary action warranted in the form of suspensions from school.

The proponents of school uniforms cite numerous studies showing positive changes in school crime statistics after implementing a school uniform policy in a district. Schools that switch to require uniforms show fewer incidents of student victimization, gang activity, fighting, non-student intrusion into schools, drop-out rates and theft. Long Beach officials reported school crime was down 36 percent and student suspensions down 32 percent after the first year of student uniforms.

School uniform opponents argue from two main sources: violation of an individual's rights and a lack of evidence connecting uniforms and improved academic achievement. Current studies show no significant correlation has been made between requiring uniforms and variables such as attendance, substance abuse, common behavior problems and academic achievement.

Opponents further argue that the school uniform policies themselves have not decreased crime, but that the parental involvement and a highlight on school violence accompanying the discussion of uniform requirements have caused the decreases. They argue that these same effects could be achieved without such an intrusive policy as school uniforms.

Opponents also blame schools for not involving parents effectively and for not taking adequate security measures in the first place. They cite increased security measures accompanying school uniform adoptions as more of a deterrent to school crime than the uniforms themselves.

Other reasons cited in opposition to school uniforms are:

• School uniforms are an abuse of administrative power. Since most schools considering uniforms are poor and have high minority populations, uniforms are just another method of demeaning these students.
• School uniforms cause economic hardship, particularly with older children who will not want to ask for financial assistance. High schoolers will choose to purchase the uniforms rather than subject themselves to charity, just as they do now in avoiding the free/reduced lunch stigma. This motivation may lead to students working unduly long hours to earn money for uniforms, stealing money to pay for uniforms, or diverting scarce funds away from necessary living expenses to pay for uniforms -- anything but admitting and asking for financial assistance from school personnel.
• Social class differences will remain. Students will continue to exert economic superiority over classmates in discrete ways, such as brand names of the uniform garments, accessories, shoes, coats, cars driven to school, vacation stories and dating practices. In other words, students will still be able to determine "castes" according to wealth regardless of outward appearances. Economic distinctions are a part of our society and covering them with a uniform will not hide their existence.
• Academic achievement will not significantly improve, particularly in respect to the tremendous amount of hardship and upheaval created by requiring student uniforms. In other words, uniforms are just not worth the trouble they'd cause.
• Courses with students that heavily rely on creativity will be squashed. Uniforms will produce sameness, a lack of individuality, a lack of spontaneity and a void of creativity.
• School uniforms may mask some of the subtle indicators of student problems that school personnel try to identify at early stages and intervene accordingly. Problems such as interest in the drug culture, gang affiliation, musical artist favorites, sex abuse, physical abuse, neglect and gender identity may be more difficult to identify at early stages if student uniforms mask outward indicators.
• Tightened dress codes and other improved security measures will accomplish the same thing or better than required school uniforms and will be less litigious.

Opponents argue that no research exists to show increased academic achievement as a sole, direct result of the implementation of a school uniform policy. Therefore, they conclude that schools should not require uniforms because the uniforms are not vital to the school's purpose: to educate students. Uniforms are just a diversion to address some of the myriad of society's problems reflected upon students.

All research surveyed indicated that a school district considering such a policy should have a clear, strong mandate to proceed with implementation. Parents and students must easily understand the "Why?" of school uniform policy consideration. Although almost all of Limestone's parents would understand the school culture arguments put forth by uniform proponents, our school does not experience the high incidence of crime or gang violence, which normally is a precursor of a school uniform requirement.

Another factor that dissuaded a recommendation of a high school uniform policy is the lack of such a practice at the feeder grade schools. If elementary and middle school students had experienced uniforms prior to ninth grade, it would be logical to extend that successful application to grades 9-12. As aptly stated by Dennis Evans (1996): "Elementary school children are not as concerned with individuality and personal rights as high schoolers are, and so they do not view required school uniforms as intrusive or objectionable."

A logical prediction might be that 10 years from now, many of the large, urban school districts that have school uniforms at the elementary and middle school levels will also phase them into their high schools. There is certainly no argument that could be made about how students are harmed by school uniforms. Therefore, students and parents who have "grown up" with school uniforms may eventually condone their use at high school grades as well.

In a way, the lack of a strong, clear mandate for requiring school uniforms at Limestone Community High School in the early 2000s is a compliment to the Board of Education, the school faculty, the school's parents and the students themselves. Not having a lot of school violence or gang activity is a good thing!

If the school climate deteriorates in the future and crime and gang violence increase to troublesome proportions, then certainly a school uniform requirement should be reconsidered. But, for now, the remedy of requiring school uniforms far outweighs the problems it would intend to solve.

Adomaitis, Charlotte. "An Inner-city School: Brooklyn's Thomas Jefferson High," The Clearing House, March/April 1996

Black, Susan. "Forever Plaid?" American School Board Journal, November 1998

Brunsma, David L. and Rockquemore, Kerry A. "Effects of Student Uniforms on Attendance, Behavior Problems, Substance Abuse, and Academic Achievement," Journal of Educational Research, September-October 1998

Caruso, Peter. "Individuality vs. Conformity: The Issue Behind School Uniforms," NASSP Bulletin, September 1996

Cohn, Carl A. "Mandatory School Uniforms," School Administrator, February 1996.

Cohn, Carol A. and Siegel, Loren. "Should Students Wear Uniforms?" Learning, September-October 1996

DeMitchell, Todd A.; Fossey, Richard; and Cobb, Casey. "Dress Codes in the Public Schools," Journal of Law & Education, January 2000

Dyrli, Odvard Egil. "Largest School System Adopts Student Uniforms," Curriculum Administrator, October 1998

Evans, Dennis L. "School Uniforms: An 'Unfashionable' Dissent," Phi Delta Kappan, October 1996

Gullat, David E. "Rationales and Strategies for Amending the School Dress Code To Accommodate Student Uniforms," American Secondary School, Summer 1999

Hamilton, Kenneth R. "Implementing a School Uniform Policy," Principal, November 1999

Hernandez, Florence. "Students' Opinions of the New Security Measures/Equipment in Their High School," ERIC No:ED398619, 1996

Hoffler-Riddick, Pamela Y. and Lassiter, Kathy J. "No More 'Sag Baggin': School Uniforms Bring Focus Back to Instruction," Schools in the Middle, May-June 1996

Holloman, Lillian O. "Violence and Other Antisocial Behaviors in Public Schools: Can Dress Codes Help Solve the Problem?"
Journal of Family and Consumer Sciences, Summer 1995

Horvat, Erin McNamara and Antonio, Anthony Lising; "Hey, Those Shoes Are Out of Uniform," Anthropology & Education Quarterly, September 1999

Isaacson, Lynne; "Student Dress Policies," ERIC Digest, Number 117, 1998

Jarchow, Elaine. "Ten Ideas Worth Stealing from New Zealand," Phi Delta Kappan, January 1992

Johnson, Robert C. "Philadelphia To Require Students To Wear Uniforms," Education Week, May 17, 2000

LaPoint, Velma; Holloman, Lillian O. and Alleyne, Sylvan I. "Dress Codes and Uniforms in Urban Schools," Education Digest, March 1993

Loesch, Paul C. "A School Uniform Program That Works," Principal, March 1995

Mancini, Gail Hinchion. "School Uniforms: Dressing for Success or Conformity?" Education Digest, December 1997

Manual on School Uniforms, ERIC No:ED387947, 1996

Model Guidelines for the Wearing of Uniforms in Public Schools. Report of the Department of Education to the Governor and the General Assembly of Virginia. House Document No. 27, 1992

Murray, Richard K. "The Impact of School Uniforms on School Climate," NASSP Bulletin, December 1997

Paliokas, Kathleen L. et al. "Trying Uniforms on for Size," American School Board Journal, May 1996

"Rights and Wrongs," Update on the Courts, Spring 1996

Ryan, Rosemary P. and Ryan, Thomas E. "School Uniforms: Esprit de Corps," School Community Journal, Fall-Winter 1998

Stankevich, Debby Garbato. "The Bus Stops Everywhere," Discount Merchandiser, April 1999

Stanley, M. Sue. "School Uniforms and Safety," Education and Urban Society, August 1996

Starr, Jennifer. "School Violence and Its Effect on the Constitutionality of Public School Uniform Policies," Journal of Law & Education, January 2000

Stevenson, Zollie, Jr. and Chunn, Eva Wells. "Uniform Policy/Dress Codes: School Staff and Parent Perceptions of Need and Impact," ERIC No: ED331933, 1991

Thompson, Mary-Holland W. "Revisiting School Uniforms," The Educational Forum, Summer 1999

West, Charles K.; Tidwell, Diane K.; Bomba, Anne K.; Elmore, Patsy Alexander. "Attitudes of Parents about School Uniforms," Journal of Family and Consumer Sciences: From Research to Practice, 1999

White, Kerry A. "Do School Uniforms Fit?" School Administrator, February 2000

Wilkins, Julia. "School Uniforms: The Answer to Violence in American Schools or a Cheap Educational Reform," The Humanist, March/April 1999

Woods, Helen and Ogletree, Earl. "Parents' Opinions of the Uniform Dress Code," ERIC No: ED367729, 1992

Zirkel, Perry A. "A Uniform Policy," Phi Delta Kappan, March 1998