BY MIKAELA THORNE
Sports Editor

The school year started with dozens of students being sent to the office for dress code violations, but a re-examination of the policy has led to administration being a little more forgiving in terms of fashion.
Possibly the biggest area of concern in the beginning of the year was girls who were wearing shirts that exposed their shoulders.
Administrators had printed out a summary of the dress code for teachers to post. Among the items listed, the summary said that “all shirts must have sleeves.” Then, during first period one day in September, students who were not following any of the items on that summary were sent to the office.
“I was upset because I got sent down to the office for wearing a tank top with a school logo on it, which I got at a college visit that weekend,” senior Jillian Pritchard said.
The high school administration, however, later clarified the policy, indicating that the sleeves requirement was not specifically mandated in the dress code.
“We do not have the ability to change the dress code. Only the school board directors can change it. However, we are able to define the policy in accordance to the dress code, and the sheet passed out at the beginning of the year was just a broad outline,” Assistant Principal Heather Hibner said.
A continuing concern, meanwhile, focuses on yoga pants, which could be seen as violating the dress code, which bans tight-fitting apparel.
“I’ve heard people talking about the school banning yoga pants since my freshman year. I just hope this year isn’t that year. I wear them almost every day,” senior Mackenzie Voelker said.
That will not happen, Principal Dr. Walter Graves said, because the board designs the dress code so that the interpretation of it can change with the times.
“Yoga pants, though they may qualify under the Spandex material, they are not the Spandex brand. The dress code is vague for that reason. Fashions come and go,” Graves said.
Due the deliberate ambiguity of the dress code, administration also relies on students to use common sense, Graves said.
Punishment for violating the dress code, meanwhile, remains the same as previous years. Students can be warned and then sent to the office for further disciplinary actions.
“For the most part, students follow the dress code, and we appreciate their accordance to it,” Graves said.