By Lexi Extein

Messenger Staff Writer

It seems as if there will never be a clear dress code accepted, under-stood, and respected by students, teachers, and staff members at Ev Cain Middle School.
The debate continues and many middle schooler’s feel as if they’re stuck between a rock and a hard place. High Schoolers on the other hand are given much more freedom, but some are taking advantage to a point where it’s embarrassing. So what’s worse, too strict or not strict enough?
This year the dress code at EV Cain Middle School has changed dramatically. The principal and staff have laid down the law and have been strictly enforcing it since.
“Everyday there’s so many girls walking around in gym clothes,” 7th grader Summer Fagundes accused; embarrassment is the consequence for getting caught with any piece of clothing that is not “school appropriate.” But, this rule may not just apply to everyone equally; “the ones that play sports for the school or contribute a lot” seem to have it off significantly easier.
After being informed that the dress code has been significantly modified, past middle schoolers were first relieved that they had escaped the harsh environment before they had suffered the consequences, and then enraged for the students that were still forced to obey the unstable rules.
“At Placer you can express yourself a lot more and I feel like they’re taking that away from the EV Cain kids because of the people that are so-called ‘distracting from education’.” Trinity Ferris states boldly. The dress code has been changed to such an extent that students feel robbed of their rights of self-expression.
Even the guys think the dress code is ridiculous and obnoxiously modest.
“Girls can wear what they want to wear, just have a few limitations,” freshman Ian Isenberg, openly explained. He also surely stated that “what girls wear never distracts guys from learning.”
So if what people wear isn’t distracting anyone from learning, what are the strict dress code’s intentions? Teaching girls to be comfortable in their skin and pleasing students is obviously not a goal the middle school is longing to achieve.
E.V. Cain 8th grader Jessica De Leon also feels strongly that middle schoolers at E.V. Cain are not “able to express themselves without being told you can’t wear a certain thing.”
This, she says, is one of the main reasons she’s excited to attend Placer High School.
At Placer High School, there is a much more express yourself- feel good vibe when it comes to what students and teachers are wearing. Students are free to wear what they think is appropriate, as long as no one is offended in the process.
“It keeps everyone happy” new freshman,” Maddie Smith beamed. “It’s hot outside, sometimes I want to wear tank tops and short shorts, without having to be worried about being dress coded,” she added.
Now that she’s attending Placer High School, Alli Judd reasoned, “I like being able to wear what I want, but yah, some people really push it.” She also did admit that she thinks “the middle school dress code is ridiculous, I mean, it’s impossible to find shorts that long; at that age they should be able to express themselves,” she added.
Are the high schoolers taking advantage of their new-found freedom to a point where their fellow students are complaining about it? Absolutely not. There may be a few particular people that push the limits, but overall most students know what to and what to not wear to school. The Middle school dress code isn’t preparing these kids for high school, the only thing it’s doing is making them feel embarrassed and ashamed about being “called out” for “revealing” outfits.