Since its revision in 2022, Westview has adhered to a dress code that has promoted diverse expression and outlined specific staff regulations. The current dress policy, which is unfamiliar for many students, is important to recognize, especially for the beginning of the school year, for its ability to outline conditions for staff to follow when dress code citations are given. We applaud Westview’s ability to to keep the campus appropriate and also foster self expression among students, without discrimination.
To safeguard against discrimination of any kind, page 47 of the student planner says that it is crucial that the “dress policy does not reinforce or increase marginalization or oppression of any group based on race, sex, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, ethnicity, religion, cultural observance, household income, hair texture, or body type/size.”
In addition, Westview’s dress policy ensures that transgender and gender-nonconforming students are not unfairly targeted or subjected to stricter enforcement compared to other students.
It is required that all Westview students wear a top, bottom, and form of footwear. As long as the clothing choices don’t contain any violent language or images, consist of tactical gear, depict drugs or alcohol, obscure a student’s face (unless for religious reasons), or offend any class or consistently marginalized group, students are allowed to self-express as desired.
In particular, since bra straps are a common outfit choice for female identifying students, the dress policy permits the wearing of them and further states that no staff member can call out a student for having these things.
Along those lines, staff are not allowed to accuse “students of ‘distracting’ other students with their clothing.” Nor labeling attire choices as “ghetto” or “trashy.” Since these terms are commonly biased or sexist comments that many dress codes make, Westview dress code is able to avoid discrimination by prohibiting these terms.
However, if dress coded, there is a respectful exchange that the policy outlines.
If a student violates the code, “they must be offered a private space to adjust their clothing.” Under no circumstances are staff members to shame students for wearing revealing or otherwise inappropriate clothing items. Doing so allows for respectful student-staff relationships while also maintaining a professional school environment.
Unless the violation causes a substantial disruption, “the student should be allowed to proceed to class and wait to have the conversation with an administrator during a lunch or free period, or after school.”
An important procedure that the policy outlines is that staff members must “understand that [students] are responsible for managing their own personal ‘distractions’ without regulating individual students’ clothing/self expression.”
This way, it is more open to the students to determine what they think is appropriate. We believe this has encourages students to be more independent in choosing school attire.
In addition, staff members are prohibited from “touching a student, or their clothing, or attempt to remove anything from a student’s body, kneeling or bending over to check attire fit; measuring straps or skirt length; asking students to account for their attire in the classroom or in hallways in front of others; calling out students in spaces, in hallways, or in classrooms about perceived dress policy violations in front of others.”
By defining and enforcing these rules, Westview students are better respected.
In the case of a student feeling as if they have been unfairly dress-coded for any reason, the policy explicitly states that they can contact the principal or assistant principal.
By following a detailed dress code, Westview is fostering a comfortable and safe environment. The Nexus continues to endorse the dress policy’s attention on what staff are permitted to say to students as well as its strict safeguards against discrimination of any sort.
