High School Orders Students to Get Pre-Approved for Dance Dresses
Don't say yes to the dress until the school does.
Pewaukee High School, in Pewaukee, Wisc., is making students submit photos of the dresses they want to wear to next month's homecoming dance before they can buy tickets to the big event. Officials will review the dresses to determine whether it meets their guidelines and can be worn.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel explains the logic:
The policy, an extension of the Pewaukee School District's dress code, is aimed at keeping students from being ejected from the event for showing too much skin, according to Pewaukee Superintendent Mike Cady. And it's not new. It's been around since January 2015."
While the policy may be nearly three years old, some students and parents are still ticked off, claiming it's sexist. The matter came back to light last week after the school sent a reminder to families.
"The girls are essentially being held responsible for the wayward thoughts (administrators) think boys have," said Rebecca Sheperd, whose daughter is a freshman at the school. "They're being told, 'You are the problem.' These are the roots of rape culture, frankly."
School superintendent Cady doesn't see it that way, though. "It's really out of a sensitivity to our students," he said. "We want (school dances) to be a positive experience. We don't want anyone to show up and have to be sent home because of a dress-code violation."