At the start of this school year, Mt. Carmel administration decided to make some dress code changes that have really gotten mixed reviews from the students.

Before this year, students could wear t-shirts during the warm weather dress code months, and students were allowed to to wear IDs in their pockets as long as teachers had a way of knowing they had it. But this year, those rules have changed. 

One change by the school is that students are required to wear an MC polo shirt no matter the weather. 

According to the Assistant Dean of Students Brian Hurry, the switch to only being able to wear polos instead of being able to wear MC t-shirts in summer dress code was mostly because the polos looks “neater” and are a “more classy look.” Hurry also feels that “putting polos on would still be comfortable.”

Faculty are being more strict on enforcing wearing ID’s around students’ neck and facing the right direction. As a compensation, the school is giving dress down days on most Fridays, which was more positively taken by students. 

But some students don’t feel that some of the dress code changes are as necessary as the faculty do. 

Junior Dominic Gadalinski believes that wearing the polos isn’t a big hassle or a big inconvenience, but he takes issue because students “spend money on shirts and stuff and can’t even wear them to school.” (Again, though, many Fridays will be dress down opportunities.)

On the other hand, some people think that it is only a slight inconvenience but not anything to be super annoyed about.

Senior T.J. Boyd thinks that the new changes in dress code rules are only “a little bit annoying, but it .doesn’t really bother” him.

Some students think that the dress code changes are simply unnecessary. 

Sophomore Ryan Nichols believes that the rules are “simply not needed” and wished that students had more “individual freedom” when it is summer dress code. But he also feels that the increase in dress down days does help to compensate. 

Then there are students who are content with the dress code changes and feel that it has positive and negative aspects to it.

Senior Luke Gricus feels that there are positives and negatives to the dress code changes. He thinks that they “outweigh each other.” He feels that the polos and ID changes actually make it easier for him to get ready in the morning. 

Although some students may be slightly annoyed or confused by the changing of dress code rules, dress code is a thing that can change from year to year, so if students are truly outraged by having to wear polos no matter summer or winter dress code or having to always wear ID’s around the neck, then they can try and talk to the student body president, the principal, or the deans to have their voices officially heard and possibly affect change.