Written by: Devika 

Edited by: Mehek 

Since Battle of the Bearcats, seniors have been showing off their exclusive, customized hoodies, but often at the cost of a trip to the high school office. However, what is the appeal of these hoodies? “I think that [it’s] to show that it is the last year of school and I like them more than the uniform,” one senior explains. 

These hoodies are a fun and stylish way for seniors to show their senior spirit at school, and the customized nicknames on the back are fond reminders of inside jokes or memories here at ISM. There is no doubt that the customizable hoodies are a fun way for seniors to connect, but to the disappointment of many students, they violate the school’s dress code. Since then, there has been confusion and displeasure from the senior batch surrounding the now infamous hoodies.  

Senior hoodies are not a part of the official ISM uniform policy because they were never a tradition.  During the pandemic, the Parent Community Association (PCA) for the class of 2021 wanted to unite their kids, thus delivering customized hoodies to each student. Since then, the PCA of every senior batch have continued to customize hoodies for the students. Yet since it is not an official school partnership, these hoodies violate the uniform policy. Vice principal, Ms. Thompson said: “[Senior parents] were informed that it’s not dress code, like you can’t just have some random person say ‘hey, you can wear this at school,’ when we have a strict dress code Pre-K to 12.” 

To offer more opportunities to wear hoodies that have already been purchased and to promote Senior Swag, Ms. Thompson was able to compromise with superintendent Mr. Brown to have certain days where seniors are allowed to sport their hoodies and other students are able to wear their team gear. If the trial during the whole-school assembly on October 4th goes well, high school students will then have the opportunity to wear their batch or team gear during whole-school assembly days throughout the upcoming school year. 

What is the purpose of such a strict uniform policy? “Not only does it align culturally with other schools… we do have quite a wealth disparity in our school, so in terms of that, it levels the playing field,” Ms. Thompson explained. ISM enforces a dress code to mitigate feelings of embarrassment/insecurity that some students may face as a result of their clothes.  Because seniors have to purchase the hoodies that are not provided by the school, they are no exception to the rule. 

However, even if one does get caught wearing their senior hoodie, seniors who wished to remain anonymous revealed that the consequences are nothing more than a quick conversation with Ms. Thompson or a teacher to remind them of school policy. “She came up to me during lunch and she was like ‘please take that off, it’s not school uniform’, but I didn’t get in like trouble-trouble,” one student said. Another explained, “She just said that it’s not ISM uniform and we can’t wear it.” As much as Ms. Thompson sympathizes with students wanting to wear the hoodies, “It is directed from the superintendent’s office that students are in their proper ISM uniform and that we enforce it.” 

While the disappointment from seniors is understandable, it is not only important to recognize the violation of uniform policy, but also the purpose of having one. Having a dress code creates a more inclusive environment, and prevents students from feeling ashamed or excluded because of their clothes.  However, this doesn’t mean that students won’t have the chance to show off their senior spirit at all since they are encouraged to wear batch/club outfits on ISM Swag days, which will be announced periodically throughout the year!