School Uniforms Letter
Written February 2003
Dear Loudoun County School Board,
I understand that you are proposing mandatory school uniforms. As a student, I support this proposal.
There is less teasing because of clothes when students wear uniforms. I used to live in Broward County, Florida. When I was in fourth grade for the 1998-1999 school year, there was no uniform policy. I observed a lot of kids getting made fun of because of how they dressed. When Broward County switched to having school uniforms the following year, that teasing was almost eliminated. What kids were wearing was no longer an issue because everyone was wearing the same school uniforms.
School uniforms can lead to higher test scores, as some studies show. With uniforms, Kids do not have to pay attention to clothes, so they can concentrate on their schoolwork instead. Indian Ridge Middle School in Davie, Florida has a uniform policy. I attended it for the 2000-2001 school year, and we had some of the highest scores in the state on the FCAT standardizes tests. A school in Texas’s test scores skyrocketed the year that they switched to a uniform policy. Could uniforms have been what caused that?
School uniforms are less expensive. Not upfront, but in the long run. Instead of buying a ton of different tops and bottoms for the school year, all that needs to be bought is a week’s worth of uniforms. Unless the child grows a considerable amount, that one set of uniforms could last for a few years. If a parent does not need to buy so many school clothes for his or her child, that parent can save money, more money than is the cost of the uniforms in the first place. In the long run, school uniforms make sense financially.
Eliminating teasing. Raising test scores. Saving money. All this could possibly be done by school uniforms. I say, give it a try. What harm could it do?
Sincerely,
Debra Rose Singer