This is for my fellow parents and students who are tired of the outdated school uniform policies that have now been in place for almost 26 years. Many probably didn't know, but 4 years ago Terrebonne Parish discussed reforming the policy and replacing it with an appropriate dress code during their December 8th, 2021 board meeting. This was met by a 7 to 2 vote between members (all listed above) harshly denying the movement. Terrebonne Parish, being one of the more progressive school districts down here by the coast, has led the way in trying to relieve some of the complaints students and parents have. In 2022 they finally made the ground breaking decision to allow higher grade kids to wear black pants rather than their signature khaki. Even Lafourche which is historically strict has lightened up by removing their mesh schoolbag policy back in 2021. These changes showed signs of hope, but they have not distracted students and parents alike from what we all really want. School uniforms in public schools are a thing of the past, littered with contradictions and needless restrictions that I will argue here create a worse school environment. 

Uniforms policies affect everybody in these rural parishes in Louisiana. Although the rest of the states have completely gotten rid of uniforms in public schools (or never had them in the first place) the people who have the power in LA insist that it is all to help their students. Let's look at the reasons it's helping us, shall we?

One of the first arguments that pro-uniform people bring up is that it discourages peer pressure and bullying. This is honestly the weakest one that I've heard, as everybody knows that kids are getting bullied for many other reasons other than the clothes on their back. But whenever it does come down to clothes, children/teens alike are expected by their peers to have the newest and latest trendy outfits outside of school, and because of uniforms now they're simply expected to have two different wardrobes of still, typically over-expensive outfits.

This leads into my second pro-uniform counter argument that people present, which is that it's cheaper. I understand that some parents can find their kids clothes from Walmart/Target for a reasonable price and force their children to wear it, but I don't know about anybody else- I vividly remember getting told by my friends in 7th+ grade that Dickies were a horrible brand of school clothes. Kids wearing them, including myself, would get ridiculed for the blocky design and the fact that they were "Walmart pants". This led to my mom having to buy 50+ dollar pants every year instead. Each school year my uniforms got more and more expensive because I would refuse to go to school with the cheap clothes, just to get bullied for the same things they are trying to prevent like obvious wage-gaps in families. I am thankfully that finally here in 2025, Lafourche has made a landmark decision to have “school uniform voucher program” in an attempt to assist parents with it. If it wasn’t a problem in the first place, why would we need programs for it?

Leading from that, another big hole in the argument that "it puts all kids on a level playing field" is simply that all kids are not equal. Growing up as a plus-size kid myself, I would cry almost every morning before school because I couldn't stand how I looked in those collared shirts and khakis. I was constantly having to ask myself why couldn't I just look like other kids wearing the exact same clothes whenever I simply just needed to wear different clothes. I truly believe that if I was given the freedom to wear clothes that properly complimented my body type growing up, I wouldn't have as many self-esteem and mental health issues related to school.

One last argument I would like to tackle is that it enforces a professional environment and has improved school performances. If this were TRULY the case, why does Louisiana still have some of the lowest test scores in the United States? That's a different issue for another day, but it's food for thought. Another thought I've been holding onto for years is that some of the only employees I regularly see wearing specific uniforms instead of a reasonable dress code are minimum wage workers. Tell me why our kids at Village East are forced to wear the same outfit as a McDonald's employees, and how professional that makes them look. How about the kids at Houma Junior High that wear the same collared shirts and khakis that Walmart employees wear? You're telling these children and teenagers that this is what they'll have to wear to secure a good job, while their teachers don't show up to school everyday with the same uniforms that make them so "professional".

Dress codes consistently prove to work all through out the United States in many workplaces and schools alike, without ruining people or kids' freedom of expression. It's time that we stop making excuses, and finally get up to date with what the rest of society has acknowledged is more beneficial for our children and their future.

I decided to create this petition 4 years ago to start spreading the word and get people motivated to finally make these necessary changes. I am STILL to this day highly motivated and truly believe the change is there waiting to happen we just have to push for it. We CAN and WILL do this, together. If you have any extra comments, questions, or concerns you can shoot me an e-mail @abschooluniforms. Thank you for your time! :)