For the entirety of their time at HHS, students have been warned time and time again to always wear sneakers and never wear jeans in gym class. Though some may have been able to get away with wearing non-athletic wear in the past, gym teachers have begun to crack down on the dress code.
The continued enforcement of the physical education dress code has affected quite a number of students. Here, some share their thoughts on these regulations.
“I genuinely dislike it. It prevents me from showing who I am through my appearance,” junior Daniel O’Reilly said. “I also hate having to carry around clothes that barely fit in my backpack.” He also noted the difference between this year and year’s prior. “Last year it was different. I could wear what I wanted to and my teacher didn’t bat an eye,” said O’Reilly.
Junior Katie Sanchez has a similar viewpoint on the dress code. “My outfits aren’t that good anymore, because I don’t get to wear jeans,” Sanchez explains. “I have to change out of them all the time. It’s kind of annoying, and I’m not a big fan.”
Teachers and administrators have a different point of view on the dress code.
According to physical education teacher Daniel Clements, teachers have begun cracking down on the dress code because of a negative trend they noticed among Physical Education students. “What was happening is, because they weren’t changing at all, they weren’t participating at all. It kind of gave them the mentality that they didn’t have to put forth the effort that’s expected,” Clements said. Clements also connected the heightened enforcement to other implementation of existing school policy. “We’re kind of going back, just like the school in general is going back to no phones.” Clements said.
The relation of certain articles of clothing and gym performance seems to be the largest motivator of the heightened enforcement of the dress code. According to Daniel Polles, the Health and Physical Education Supervisor of Hillsborough Public Schools, the aim of the dress code is so students can participate in gym with no physical restrictions. “Typically denim is heavy. It’s not stretchy. It limits students’ full range of motion,” Polles said. “We want them at their best, participating actively.” Polles also explained how certain articles of clothing can pose a safety risk while worn in physical education classes. “The metal rivets, zippers, belt loops, those sorts of things, can get caught while [students] are playing,” Polles said.
Although this policy may be frustrating and seem restrictive to students who are affected by it, physical education teachers see it as a way to encourage students to participate and give their best performance in gym class.
