Flashing eyes and colorful hair, an assortment of costumes everywhere. Halloween is right around the corner and costumes are flying off the racks. The only problem that remains is wearing what you want while adhering to the school dress code.
Townsend Harris High School is known to have a strict dress code. Every year, students struggle to choose a fun costume, while remaining within school regulations.
When it comes to Halloween, THHS does not allow students to wear masks, or any kind of face concealment, display profane props, such as weapons.
When asked about the consequences for breaking these rules, Dean Robin Figelman commented, “some students did violate the dress code and were asked to put a sweater on, but they were not given demerits and they were not sent home.”
Freshman Felix Montgomery said, “I think that it’s normal for schools to not allow weapons. He adds, “wearing masks can obscure your identity which can pose a threat, however if a mask is easily removable… it’s fine. But face painting is not [okay].”
On the other hand, freshman Kahlil Pollock-Hinds says, “masks shouldn’t be allowed. You should be able to see the [person’s] face.”
Most students believe that by painting your entire face, you are obstructing school officials’ ability to recognize you, even if you present them with your ID.
In terms of toy weapons, students and faculty both agree that they might be mistaken as real.
In today’s society, there have been many violent incidents, outside of THHS walls, involving school campuses. Junior Klaudia Hanus brings up this reasoning by stating, “weapons shouldn’t be allowed because they symbolize violence. With the amount of violence in our world today, I don’t believe we need it in our school environment.”
She emphasizes her point by adding “I don’t think we should be allowed to wear masks. With the amount of tragedies in schools in America, it would be easy for someone in a mask to sneak in.”
Sophomore David Kozuch believes that costumes should be, “decent enough to be [presented] to someone important…[and] should respect all people.” He thinks that students should not be able to paint their faces or wear masks because, “it poses a risk to school personnel [since] they wouldn’t know who the person in the mask is.”
Senior Peony Tse feels that, “We have these rules to keep the learning environment a comfortable one for students. A huge aspect of the Townsend Harris community is the safety.”
A final word of advice came from Ms. Figelman who offered: “[students] can have as much fun as they want with their Halloween costumes” but to make it easier “just go to the store and buy appropriate costumes and if [you’re going to] make [your] own costumes, make them long enough and cover up.”
