AURORA | Students at Aurora Central High School will have a new dress code to abide by when they come back to school after summer.
Aurora Central is set to implement a strict dress code for 2017-2018 that would include limiting the color of shirts worn by students to white, grey, black or dark green. For shirts with logos or graphics that aren’t from Aurora Central, the size of the graphics must be limited to 2×2 inches.
“The major change to the code is the shirt colors. Students will only be allowed to wear specific colors, but will still allowed to wear things like jeans,” said Corey Christiansen, spokesman for Aurora Public Schools. “There are still a lot of different opportunities for students to wear different combinations of clothes.”
Principal Gerardo De La Garza said the goal behind the tighter dress code is to promote school spirit and to increase academic achievement for students moving forward. While there might be some changes to the final dress code made over the early part of summer break, the current plan is outlined on the school’s website.
“We want to make sure the attire students wear creates a certain atmosphere we’re trying (for) at Aurora Central, an atmosphere which emphasizes academics and good behavior and school spirit,” De La Garza said. “We’re trying to limit the amount of colors and the graphic shirts and hoodies that may promote things that we don’t want promoted here. That’s why we’re asking students to wear certain colors that would easily identify them as Aurora Central students. We’re also encouraging Aurora Central gear to promote that atmosphere and that school spirit that we want here.”
While some parents have expressed support for the stricter dress code, not everyone’s sold. David Bouchey and Rebecca Finnie have had two children graduate from Aurora Central and their youngest is currently enrolled. The two were highly critical of the strict dress code — which they called essentially a school uniform — and the lack of opportunity for parents to comment on the proposals.
Aurora Central hosted two morning “coffee meetings” and an evening meeting this year to introduce the new dress code and take feedback.
“We went to one of the morning meetings and they gave us this flier and we were shocked. It basically is so restrictive on what students can wear,” Bouchey said. “It doesn’t matter what they call it, it’s a uniform policy.
“(The school’s) mission is supposed to be celebrating diversity and inclusion,” he added. “And what you’re doing with this is you’re forcing them to be all alike.”
Finnie said the dress code not only takes away students’ ability to express themselves, but also represents a financial hardship for families who don’t have the resources to buy more clothes to fit the new policy. And since it’s not a policy that’s being adopted by every school in the district, she thinks it signals Aurora Central as a school to avoid.
“The bigger issue is that student uniforms get implemented in minority-majority schools. And school uniforms get associated with a place that is dangerous and violent,” Finnie said. “They’re teenagers. They should be out expressing themselves. Developmentally, this is the stage of the game when they’re supposed to be doing it.”
De La Garza said in no way did the tighter dress code constitute a school uniform and given the options available to students, he didn’t see it as being a financial burden on families.
“Many of our students already have outfits that fit this criteria. Many students already wear white t-shirts and jeans or Trojans gear,” De La Garza said. “The message I want to go out again is it’s not a uniform. Students will have that flexibility to vary their wardrobes as long as they’re meeting particular guidelines. It is going to still offer that variety and choice for students.”