The graduation dress requirements for New Trier High School are long outdated. Women are required to wear floor length white gowns, and men are required to wear white tuxes. Apart from the high prices of buying—or even renting—such attire, this policy prevents students from opting out of wearing the clothing designated for their gender. If a woman wants to wear a tux, or a man wants to wear a dress, that should be his/her choice, not the school’s decision.

Title IX states that no person can be “subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity” on the basis of sex. Title IX, along with the Illinois Human Rights Act, the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, as well as the Equal Educational Opportunities provision of New Trier’s own Guidebook, provide a basis for the school’s violation of antidiscrimination laws.

New Trier should end this discriminatory and outdated dress code for the Graduation Ceremony. Whether that means adopting the standard cap-and-gown, or allowing all students to choose what kind of formal attire they wear, that should be up to further debate.