Dress Code in Catholic Universities

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meltzerboy

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I teach in a Catholic university and there doesn’t appear to be a dress code for the students although there is probably an informal one for the professors. I say “doesn’t appear” because I never actually inquired; however, based on what I’ve observed, if there IS a dress code, I can’t imagine how students might dress without one.

I guess I’m not as liberal as I thought–or maybe I’ve changed somewhat since becoming a member of CAF–but it seems to me a little more propriety in dress might be in order, especially in a Catholic university. Some of my female students, in particular, dress somewhat like trollops. I wonder what the latter can wear nowadays to differentiate themselves. This way of dressing would NEVER pass in Jewish yeshiva universities.

I know most of these “dress threads” relative to Church and the beach get closed down soon. I don’t recall seeing one with regard to the University though, and since some of you are college students and professors, I was interested in your views, as well as the views of everyone else. I realize we can’t, and probably shouldn’t, go back to the 1940’s and 50’s, but what about some sort of compromise?
 
Thomas Aquinas College in California has a dress code.
Modesty is always required. Necklines, garment tightness, and garment length are required to be reasonable for everyone.
For meals, Mass, and class, women wear skirts or dresses (with shoulders covered, not sure if all the way or just a certain strap thickness) that cover the knee and men wear collared shirts.

Men are expected to wear shirts at all times, except when swimming.For swimming, women’s bathing suits are to cover the midriff.

TAC is one of the more “conservative” Catholic schools. They also have single sex dorms with no visiting from members of the opposite sex at all and a prohibition on public displays of affection.
 
This is not exactly about a dress code in Catholic universities but I firmly believe that the public high schools should have a dress code – several years ago I was coming home via public transportation when a group of public high school students got on the car and I couldn’t believe how they were dressed – the clothes didn’t fit them – the pants were hanging off, etc., etc. Then a few stops later a group of boys from the Catholic high school in the area got on the car and what a DIFFERENCE – their clothes weren’t exactly PLUSH, but at least they fit them – I know they won’t have a dress code in the public high schools but definitely think they should!
 
DaddyGirl said:
Trollops! Well, MB, I haven’t heart that word in ages.
Are the male students also dressing immodestly?
What are these females wearing that look trollop-like? Hard to comment if we don’t know what ya mean. Your version of trollop might be another person’s preppy. More details, please?
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I actually like the word trollop and look forward to thinking of it rather than the words that have been coming to mind when I see a girl or woman immodestly dressed.
 
BarbG said:
This is not exactly about a dress code in Catholic universities but I firmly believe that the public high schools should have a dress code – several years ago I was coming home via public transportation when a group of public high school students got on the car and I couldn’t believe how they were dressed – the clothes didn’t fit them – the pants were hanging off, etc., etc. Then a few stops later a group of boys from the Catholic high school in the area got on the car and what a DIFFERENCE – their clothes weren’t exactly PLUSH, but at least they fit them – I know they won’t have a dress code in the public high schools but definitely think they should!
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I remember way back we had dress codes in public high schools: no jeans, for example, and in my public elementary school in NYC, boys had to wear ties every day and on assembly day, they wore white shirts and green ties, while girls wore white blouses and green kerchiefs. I was once pulled out of line by the assistant principal and not allowed to go to assembly because my tie was blue-green instead of green! Times have certainly changed. Nowadays, in some schools, if boys even wear a tea-shirt, it’s considered an accomplishment.

As I stated before, I don’t want to go back to the old days, not that we can anyway. But I get the impression we’ve gone overboard (or perhaps under-board) in dress. I know self-expression is important, but a little modesty might be in place, especially in a Catholic university.
 
BarbG said:
This is not exactly about a dress code in Catholic universities but I firmly believe that the public high schools should have a dress code – several years ago I was coming home via public transportation when a group of public high school students got on the car and I couldn’t believe how they were dressed – the clothes didn’t fit them – the pants were hanging off, etc., etc. Then a few stops later a group of boys from the Catholic high school in the area got on the car and what a DIFFERENCE – their clothes weren’t exactly PLUSH, but at least they fit them – I know they won’t have a dress code in the public high schools but definitely think they should!
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My daughter’s public high school has a dress code. No jeans, pants have to be gray, black or khaki, skirts knee length and same colors as the pants. Shirts have to be modest, no sleeveless or low cut or tight, school colors or white/off white. Dress code even for gym. No flip flops for girls, all shoes must have a back. If a shirt has an emblem on it, like Polo, the emblem can’t be no more than an inch wide. No strips or glitter tops for girls.
 
DaddyGirl said:
Trollops! Well, MB, I haven’t heart that word in ages.
Are the male students also dressing immodestly?
What are these females wearing that look trollop-like? Hard to comment if we don’t know what ya mean. Your version of trollop might be another person’s preppy. More details, please?
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DaddyGirl, these women are NOT dressed like preppies; I know the difference. Their manner of dress reminds me of the women I used to see (while passing by, NOT personally) on 42nd Street in Times Square in the 1970’s before Times Square was transformed into Disney World by Mayor Giuliani. But some of these students are very bright, so I guess I shouldn’t complain about their external appearance so much. Don’t judge a book by its cover and all that. The male students don’t dress any more immodestly than we did back in the late 1960’s and 1970’s.
 
I actually like something I’ve heard some colleges start to do - require all students to dress in business casual. This both solves the modesty problem and has the advantage that students get lessons in how to dress for work. Plus they have a wardrobe ready when they graduate; particularly if (as I think it should be) this initiative is paired with support for low-income students in purchasing appropriate clothing.
 
meltzerboy said:
That’s why I used that word; it sounds somehow a little more dignified.
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“Tart” would also work.

I’ve given up on expecting men or women to dress decently - that is, appropriate to the occasion. Besides being immodest, way too many - especially men - are slobs. I’m old and getting tired - I no longer protest.

But nobody can hear what I’m thinking. 😉
 
DarkLight said:
I actually like something I’ve heard some colleges start to do - require all students to dress in business casual. This both solves the modesty problem and has the advantage that students get lessons in how to dress for work. Plus they have a wardrobe ready when they graduate; particularly if (as I think it should be) this initiative is paired with support for low-income students in purchasing appropriate clothing.
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This sounds like a good and practical idea. Now if we could also teach students more about managing their finances…
 
Bonnie said:
“Tart” would also work.

I’ve given up on expecting men or women to dress decently - that is, appropriate to the occasion. Besides being immodest, way too many - especially men - are slobs. I’m old and getting tired - I no longer protest.

But nobody can hear what I’m thinking. 😉
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Men are naturally slobs and proud of it. You can’t fight nature!
 
PatriceA said:
My daughter’s public high school has a dress code. No jeans, pants have to be gray, black or khaki, skirts knee length and same colors as the pants. Shirts have to be modest, no sleeveless or low cut or tight, school colors or white/off white. Dress code even for gym. No flip flops for girls, all shoes must have a back. If a shirt has an emblem on it, like Polo, the emblem can’t be no more than an inch wide. No strips or glitter tops for girls.
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I’ve heard that some public high schools have gone back to dress codes. Not a bad idea, I think.
 
DaddyGirl said:
I was only kiddin’ that you would confuse the two.
But I wasn’t sure what you mean by dressing like a trollop…
Do you actually mean attire like Taxi-Driver-Midnight-Cowboy ripped fishnets, 5-inch platforms, and bustier tube tops?
I only ask because some people on this site have commented in a similar fashion in the past, and they were talking about skirts that went above the knee and bare arms.

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I do mean what you describe. Very distracting at times.
 
meltzerboy said:
This sounds like a good and practical idea. Now if we could also teach students more about managing their finances…
Click to expand...
I like the idea of either going business casual or having a flat-out uniform. Dress codes always made me feel a bit singled out and self-conscious as a girl, and I’ve heard some horror stories from remarkably well-endowed female friends about how they could never seem to pass in anything other than a baggy t-shirt. Keep things modest while avoiding making “modesty” the focus.
 
My public high school also had a dress code. Bottoms had to be one inch past fingertips (if someone had rips above this point, they had to wear tights underneath),leggings could not be worn as pants, no hats or super baggy jeans were allowed (gangs), and no inappropriate messages on shirts (drug related, curse words, gang related, or weapons). Theoretically there were also no visible bra straps allowed, but that was largely ignored.
Though this was sometimes carried out to an unreasonable degree (I have long fingers and got dress coded for a very modest, knee length skirt, a friend of mine had a Saint Michael the Archangel shirt and had to turn it inside out because St. Michael was depicted with a centimeter long sword) or not strict enough (it’s kind of crazy how much one can dress like a… trollop while technically following the rules) it worked pretty well and in a school of over 5,000 students, the majority were decent, if sloppy.
 
meltzerboy said:
I teach in a Catholic university and there doesn’t appear to be a dress code for the students although there is probably an informal one for the professors. I say “doesn’t appear” because I never actually inquired; however, based on what I’ve observed, if there IS a dress code, I can’t imagine how students might dress without one.

I guess I’m not as liberal as I thought–or maybe I’ve changed somewhat since becoming a member of CAF–but it seems to me a little more propriety in dress might be in order, especially in a Catholic university. Some of my female students, in particular, dress somewhat like trollops. I wonder what the latter can wear nowadays to differentiate themselves. This way of dressing would NEVER pass in Jewish yeshiva universities.

I know most of these “dress threads” relative to Church and the beach get closed down soon. I don’t recall seeing one with regard to the University though, and since some of you are college students and professors, I was interested in your views, as well as the views of everyone else. I realize we can’t, and probably shouldn’t, go back to the 1940’s and 50’s, but what about some sort of compromise?
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I don’t think its appropriate for you to describe female students in that manner especially as you teach there.
 
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