A long-standing Bromfield tradition will end this year when seniors graduate on June 5. Previously, female graduates have worn white gowns and males have worn blue gowns. But this year gowns of each color will be assigned randomly rather than by gender. In a poll issued by the administration, students favored this random distribution of colors over other options. The change comes as a result of Principal Jim O’Shea’s determination to bring the school into compliance with state antidiscrimination laws. Although most students agree with the reason for the change, the road to the final decision was fraught with disappointment and frustration.
The survey
Despite disgruntled students, the administration remained steadfast about making a change at this year’s graduation. Although the administration did not seek student input on the decision to make a change, it did solicit students’ opinions on how to implement the change. O’Shea sent an online survey to all students in grades 9 to 12, giving them six options of various color combinations. Additionally, a bulletin board display constructed by the administration showed the student body the new color options for gowns.
The survey was administered online through Google Forms, and the link was distributed via a schoolwide email and Facebook. The original poll closed on April 1. Following that initial survey, the administration issued a follow-up survey, eliminating all the options except the top two: blue gowns with a white sash or random assignment of blue gowns and white gowns. The latter choice prevailed.
The justification
In a March 25 email sent to every high school student and parent, O’Shea explained the premise behind the change. The main reasons for switching to gender-neutral graduation gowns, he wrote, were to ensure that all graduates felt comfortable on their graduation day, to comply with Massachusetts gender-identity law, and to better reflect the Harvard Public Schools’ core values.
Students, although initially dismayed that little student input was considered, have accepted that change is inevitable. Certain individuals have commended O’Shea for recognizing that, including senior Emma Delaney, who said, “Mr. O’Shea’s thinking was progressive and a step in the right direction.”
Others acknowledge the national societal shifts toward accepting nonconventional gender identities. Senior Emma Keaney advocated that graduation should not be about gown color but about “celebrating all of the hard work you have completed after so many years. It’s about the moment you get handed your diploma and feel accomplished.” And senior Maggie Engler commented that “tradition never benefitted everyone.”
Some students, however, believe that a classwide shift to the new plan for graduation gowns is a drastic change to make for what they believe is hardly a problem. Senior James Allen said, “I don’t think there was any issue with the color of the gowns until our grade was told that there was an issue.”
Senior Drew Mora seconded Allen’s conviction and proposed an alternative solution. She said the best way to handle the situation would be to issue each senior a form asking what color she or he would like to wear. That way, she said, the color issue remains “private and personal and … special for everyone involved.”
The real controversy
If most seniors have accepted the change in gown color for their graduation this year, then where does the controversy lie? The source of the discontent lies in the process used to reach the decision. Of the seven students who voluntarily spoke to the Press about the issue, all share the opinion that the way the administration handled the change was unfair and unacceptable. Many students feel that the change was not well explained, and they fear that the way the change happened is an accurate predictor of how upcoming school changes will occur.
The administration had very little discussion with the senior class on the subject, planning only one gradewide meeting and one meeting with the senior class officers before announcing the change. There was no follow-up after the initial meetings, and the underclassmen were completely uninvolved in the discussion. Because of this lack of communication, most seniors say that the change was too significant to make without a gestation period and conversation.
Graduating senior Elly vandeVaart said that O’Shea was “forcing [the change] upon us and expecting us to comply” without actually listening to students’ opinions. Senior Evelyn MacMahon submitted a letter to the Harvard Press.
Senior Amy Jorgensen wrote a letter to O’Shea. She argued adamantly that changing the gown color showed the “extremely hypocritical” side of the administration. She supported her point by highlighting some of the school’s practices that still separate male and female sexes and ultimately do not create a truly gender-inclusive environment. Specifically, she cited several examples of hypocrisy, such as the female dress code, which is far more heavily enforced than that of the males; the gender-specific staff-senior basketball game teams; and the recent “Mr. Bromfield” mock beauty pageant celebrating only Bromfield’s male-identifying students.
Yet in a later discussion, Jorgensen said she had come to accept the change and admitted, “At this point I care more about [the administration] seeing how poor of a job they have done handling this than the gowns themselves.”
Emily Erdos and Casey Russell are seniors at the Bromfield School.
