Every August, a new school year approaches. It’s a time of excitement, a time of anxiety. Students are focused on starting off on the right foot in their classes, seeing their friends again, and starting their upcoming activities. Usually, the subject of a uniform is not a cause for worry. However, thanks to Loyola’s harsh enforcement of khakis this year, that is not the case for many female students.

From the very first day of orientation, the Loyola administration has come out ready for battle against the female students’ white khakis, JUGing female students left and right from the very first day. It is one thing to enforce a dress code, but it is entirely different to implement it the crude way Loyola has been. Not only is their cracking down on so-called “white khaki” crude and unnecessary, but it is also wholly uneven and hypocritical across the board.

Since the school year has started, Loyola has not been simply enforcing the dress code to make sure students are wearing the right khaki color. In fact, in many circumstances, deans are barely even looking at khaki color, taking a look at the brand instead. Loyola Academy deans have been targeting Free People khakis specifically, not paying much attention to what color these khakis are.

Sure, some students are wearing white khakis, but many of the students who are getting JUGs are wearing khaki colored pants, not white. Some students even reported having to change into dean-issued khakis that were lighter than the one they were wearing in the first place. 

The deans have also been enforcing the khaki dress code unevenly across the sexes. For example, many boys at Loyola Academy frequently wear Vineyard Vines khakis that are just as white as the Free People ones, yet they aren’t getting JUGs left and right.

Although Loyola Academy is just trying to enforce the dress code, which is understandable, the way they have gone about it is far too harsh, too soon. Girls at Loyola Academy should be able to focus on their schoolwork, not have to worry about the color of their khakis all day, nor should they be given a one-day warning to dye their khakis, or else. They shouldn’t be looked up and down every day by the deans as they walk into the school building.

 There are not many boot-cut khaki options that fit well, and the female students at Loyola Academy are just trying to find khaki options that work for both them and Loyola’s dress code. You would think a female dean would be more sympathetic to the predicament, but unfortunately, that hasn’t been the case. Although both Loyola and the students have made strides to remedy the situation, there is still a long way to go.