Students accepting new school attire, slowly

HANAMA‘ULU — The corridors at King Kaumuali‘i Elementary School will be a sea of red and yellow.

Except on Wednesdays.

When Waimea High School classes begin Aug. 25 (for freshmen) and Aug. 26 for the entire student body, there will be waves of blue-and-white clad students.

Maybe.

Whether they are called “school T-shirts,” “uniforms,” “learning attire” or “school wear,” the trend of moving away from school dress codes that were vague and rarely enforced to school attire for all students is spreading to new campuses this fall.

The Kapa‘a public schools already have school uniforms (a variety of T-shirts, really), and this year Waimea High and King Kaumuali‘i are just two schools were school-wear is the required attire beginning with the 2004-05 school year that starts later this month on both campuses.

At Waimea, though, at last check only about half the students had ordered the required school tops, school officials there said. At Waimea, school shirts will be distributed to students and parents Monday, Aug. 16, during the scheduled fee-payment hours.

At King Kaumuali‘i, the reception for school attire has been warmer, especially with mothers who no longer have to worry about spending big bucks on name-brand shirts or worrying about their daughters telling them early in the morning on school days, “I have nothing to wear,” some King Kaumuali‘i parents and school-office personnel said.

But the fashion fiends aren’t just females, as the boys also express angst about possibly not having that latest Quiksilver or Billabong shirt just in time for the start of school.

At King Kaumuali‘i, school attire is required every school day except Wednesday, when clothing not emblazoned with the school logo is acceptable.

Students who are issued or purchase other shirts with school logos on them, like Junior Police Officers (JPOs), student-government leaders, peer mediators, members of the ‘ukulele band and others, may wear their shirts, which are in colors other than the yellow and red school colors, on days when they’re groups are meeting.

“It’s a great idea,” said Jason Yoshida, King Kaumuali‘i vice principal. “I think it gives unity to the school, and respect.” And it’s good for the community, too, as it shows community members that school officials are trying to improve each year, he said.

It’s good for the children, too, as it instills pride and respect, Yoshida continued. “And it helps the parents,” who don’t have to go to retail stores to purchase tops for their children. “It definitely saves them money,” he said.

While advanced sales of school attire have lagged at Waimea, the same is not true at King Kaumuali‘ i. After an initial order of 1,600 shirts this summer, a second order of 400 shirts went in, mostly from parents who failed to pre-order shirts before the 2003-04 school year ended. Another order is being prepared now, school officials said.