Is the hat rule outdated, and if so, how could it be better?

There’s a rule in the VHS student handbook stating that you may not wear hats in class upon a teacher’s request. We are sure you have had to deal with a teacher saying that someone can’t wear your beanie, hat, accessory, etc., in their class for no apparent reason. This rule was implemented because it is hard at times to identify a person with a hat or accessory. We tend to get offended by this, and likely many other students do as well.

Our opinion on hats in class is that they should not be prohibited in any way if they aren’t harmful to the classroom or its operations. If there’s no reason to stop a student from wearing a hat or head accessory in a classroom setting, then why stop them? We feel that this rule is outdated and shouldn’t be enforced, or at the very least as harshly as it used to be. 

 Many students will wear a hat or something similar to cover up a bad hair day, or maybe they didn’t have time to do their hair before school. Whatever the reason is, it’s often seen as disrespectful to teachers when your hat is on during class. As we and many more didn’t know the purpose of this rule, it leaves us wondering why this rule exists. We think there’s more to this rule than just being able to identify someone. 

As stated in the student handbook on page 15, “Hats, caps and other head coverings, including scarves and headbands, should not be worn inside the classrooms per teachers’ directives. Faith based or health related head coverings are exempted. Also, gloves are not to be worn.” We tend not to like teachers who restrict or prohibit head coverings without an explanation as much and dread going to their class. We find the rule to be useless in the current day. 

Ne’John Rice ‘26 said, “My head gets very cold. I tend to feel weird and uncomfortable [and] I don’t like it when I get told to take my hat off. I tend to feel weird, like I wear [my hat] all the time. It’s like a signature for me. It leaves a sour taste in my mouth about the teacher.”

Rice brings up many good points, and we really agree with Rice that we all don’t like the teachers that will make us take our beanies off. We dread going to their class for this reason, as it restricts a large sense of our self expression and general style just for entering their classroom.

Rice, according to his own words, has no malicious motives or intentions when wearing any sort of head accessory, it’s how he expresses himself, and the school rule doesn’t allow him to do that. This tends to create more of a distrust between school faculty and students, seeing as how they could feel a bit restricted considering it’s a rule they don’t know the reason for. We think that it’s because situations like this make the rule a bit redundant.          

Coal Hernadez ‘26 said, ”The hat rule has to be changed and is seen as disrespectful and seen as a distraction to teachers but to a student can just be seen as a fashion piece not even seen as that.”

For us personally, restricting how any student wears certain accessories is blatantly an issue. Unless the style or accessory itself is very obviously inappropriate for a school campus, it should be allowed for the student to wear the item in or outside of class.

To us, a hat is, in a way, a staple to how we look and feel as a person. We know that many would agree with us, in this new age of self-expression and modernity especially. The rule itself is almost completely irrelevant and should be abandoned entirely. Hopefully, in the future, there will be a change to the rule or some kind of replacement of this rule as a whole, considering how it can hinder some students’ form of expression or comfort. Hats shouldn’t be restricted or prohibited in a classroom environment for no reason.