Images provided by author. Top: WHS junior Nitika Sathiya.
Imagine yourself at school in the same exact clothes as the rest of your fellow classmates. No changes to your appearance are allowed, and continuous uniformity is required throughout the whole school day. How would you feel?
Here at Washington High School, students are not put through what can be perceived by many as a nightmare. Students are allowed the creative ability to dress themselves in their very own unique styles, which results in an immense amount of diversity to fill the school’s environment. Throughout the halls, students are seen in outfits that create individualism. An individualism that solely represents themself.
Fashion is represented in Washington in various ways. Although Washington has a dress code, the school does allow for a fair amount of leniency. Students are allowed to pull together outfits with eccentric colors and unique pieces of clothing. Charlene Nguyen, a senior here at Washington High School, goes on to explain how “I really like that we don’t have a uniform, because if I did have a uniform I wouldn’t be able to wear my favorite plaid pajama pants, and of course my birks. It would all be too ‘uniformical.’” She goes on to say how being comfortable in a learning environment is “really important” because “if students are comfortable, we can perform, and be the best version of ourselves.”
Therefore the way one dresses can impact students in numerous ways. Not only would it affect their comfort and learning ability, but it would also impact their self identity. An eleventh grader, here at Washington High School, Nitika Sathiya, explained in an interview that she would feel as if she was “put into a box” if her creative output was taken away. A box, where everywhere you looked, it would all be the same, it would all be generic. Additionally, Sathiya goes on to explain how students must be able to feel confident, and the importance of it. “When we look good, we feel good, and when we feel good we feel confident,” says Nitika, referring to the positive impact an individual’s sense of fashion has on her peers, and herself.
Moreover, the way students dress is majorly influenced by trends that are constantly erupting on social media. However, not all students follow these trends. Oftentimes students are able to take pieces of them and puzzle them together, to make something to fit their character more. These trends can also affect how people choose to dress themselves and their perceptions of certain pieces of fashion, further “building communities and friendships among alike individuals” according to Charlene.
Ultimately, the way students style themselves also creates an immense amount of diversity but also inclusivity at our school. The diversity in individuals can bring together peers, and allow them to form great bonds with one another, throughout the long school journey they all share. Not only does the fashion within our school bring many individuals closer together, but also it allows them to be the truest version of themselves.
concert.”
Wore it when I went out with
friends.”
of my favorite sweaters 🙂 I
wore it to school.”
my sister for Christmas! I
absolutely love how big and
soft it is. I also love how the
design of the 2 abstract
skeletons :)”
Nishitha Boosi, who is a senior at Washington High School, has lived in Fremont, California for the entirety of her life. She has grown up mostly in the small, but well known town of Niles. This is her first year writing for The Hatchet—Washington High School’s very own newspaper. She enjoys writing about current events, and art. Some of her hobbies include running, spending time with friends, and scrolling through social media. In the future, Nishitha plans on going to university. She is very excited for this school year to continue and prosper!