Dear Mr Carroll and Centerville administration,
    Following the first day of school, a large number of my peers and I felt we were put in an uncomfortable position, not because of each other's outfits but because of the excessive amount of dress code violations being handed out. Through these reprimands, we feel unnecessary attention was drawn to our choices of clothing AND our bodies. 
Despite the goal of a dress code being to prevent distractions in school, the new restrictions that are apparent this year have distracted the student body from their education. Students have been made tardy to their new classes so that they would be able to change their clothes, at the request of ONLY staff. These students, my peers, have expressed immense embarrassment and insecurity because of these dress code punishments. If the dress code, as it is today, is to be enforced, why were we not notified of the increased strictness before school started? Additionally, parents should have been notified so that they can adjust their approval of their childrens’ fashion choices accordingly. 
The first day of school should be a positive introduction to the school year. Instead, we feel many students’, mostly young girls’, day was turned into an example, or a lesson against provocativeness and “inappropriate” expression. 
While we agree that it is reasonable to hold a dress code in place, we feel that our outfit choices and our bodies have been exploited to an unnecessary degree in order to show the school’s ability to enforce rules, rather than to ensure minimal distraction to other students.  Though this question has been asked time and time again, we ask, who are our shoulders, our mid-drifts, distracting? Why are they distracted? Does it come from a place of sexualization? 
If nothing else, we implore you to consider that the increased enforcement of the dress code might have done more harm to the student body than the crop tops and spaghetti straps did in the first place. To illustrate the extent of our disagreement, from both the girls and boys at Centerville High School, we have compiled a list of signatures who agree with our letter below. 

                            With much respect,
                   Sarah O’Connell and Kate Wallace