Female Student Fights for Her Right to Wear Pants to Graduationby Michele Cheplic | More from this Blogger 13 Jun 2009 11:01 PM This is so not my daughter. However, I do give Chelsea Sarvis credit for standing up for what she believes in, as petty as it may seem to others. The South Carolina high school senior made headlines recently when she fought to wear pants to her graduation instead of a dress... and won. The popular Chapin High School student argued that she wouldn't be comfortable wearing a dress on graduation day and simply wanted to don the same attire as the senior boys--dress slacks and a collared shirt. "If I had to walk across the stage in a dress, I'd be completely miserable and that's not how I want to leave high school," Sarvis told local news reporters. It bears mentioning that Sarvis was allowed to wear a tuxedo to her senior prom and that she wore blue face paint at more Chapin sporting events than anyone else this year. Which is why she says she feels that being forced to wear a dress to commencement, would be a complete contradiction to the proud student she's been these last four years. The problem is that Sarvis was going up against a 25-year-old school dress code, which mandated that girls wear a dress or a skirt under their graduation gown. According to Sarvis, she was told if she didn't abide by the rule, she would not be allowed to participate in her school's graduation ceremony. The school principal initially insisted that Sarvis follow the dress code, and noted that in the quarter of a century that the rule has been in place, not one student had issued a complaint. Principal Satterfield maintained that the issue simply boiled down to "looking nice" on graduation day. "It's certainly appropriate to ask young ladies to wear a dress or a nice shirt and a nice outfit and young men to wear slacks, a shirt and a tie," said Satterfield. "If a young man showed up in flip-flops and shorts, and said I wanted to walk, we'd say no you can't." To which Sarvis replied: "If the boys look nice in dress slacks, why can't I wear them too?" In the end, the media attention was simply too much for the principal to handle and he caved. What do you make of the dress brouhaha? Related Articles: 10-Year-Old Truant Gets Pardon From President Obama Schools Taking a Bite Out of Lunchtime Colorado Making it Easier to Support Kids in School Do You Punish Your Kids for Bad Grades? Are You a Teacher's Worst Nightmare?
Learn more about Michele Cheplic  Michele Cheplic was born and raised in Hilo, Hawaii, but now lives in Wisconsin. Michele graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree in Journalism. Relevanteducation tags User Comments Samual (11722) 14 Jun 2009 04:31 AMGirls are not allowed to wear trousers at any of the schools I have taught at and boys are not to wear skirts/dresses. I wouldn't work at a school allowing girls to wear trousers as they always look very scruffy as their trousers do not match their suit blazer. The boys at our school are not allowed to wear slacks, they must wear suit trousers, I don't know if slacks means something else to you, but to me it means everyday black casual trousers instead of smart trousers.  Andrea Hermitt (5507) 14 Jun 2009 09:34 AMSlacks are dress pants as in, suit pants without the Jacket. As for whether the girl should have been able to wear pants a dress... I think it's kinda sexist to demand the girl bare her ankles or else. Perhaps she is not comfortable in bare legs... I have several female friends who just hate dresses and everything else about them is perfectly the same as any other woman. A compromise could have been a split skirt (gauchos, long skort)... but in the end, some old traditions need to die.  Michele Cheplic (37339) 15 Jun 2009 02:46 AMSamual, the Catholic school I attended had a similar dress code as the school you teach at. We didn't have choices--we wore the school uniform, even on "special days." Michele Cheplic (37339) 15 Jun 2009 02:47 AMI like your idea of gauchos, Andrea. But, you're right, some traditions die hard. Samual (11722) 15 Jun 2009 06:59 AMThe majority of schools in the UK have a dress code the same as our school or stricter.  Julie Gentry (5915) 17 Jun 2009 02:55 AMI highly doubt, based on her past "statements", that this was about dresses at all. If she had come asking to wear a nice pants suit, I doubt there would have been the controversy. She wanted to dress like the males of the group. The graduation is not just about her. Don't the OTHER students have a reasonable expectation that it will be a dressy affair? Michele Cheplic (37339) 17 Jun 2009 11:37 AMWhat did she say in her past "statements"? I thought she was Ms. Popularity and won the title of student with most school pride??? Ten years from now she probably will realize what a small blip on the radar this entire brouhaha really was. Discuss this article
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