Dress code to take at Gallup HSRyan Becenti and Tiffany Lujan, juniors at Gallup High School, model proper and improper attirre under the school's new dress code. [photo by Brain Leddy / Independent]

By Bill Donovan
Staff writer

GALLUP — One day last week, Ryan Becenti and Tiffany Lujan came by Gallup High School as models.

Both juniors, they were asked to come to demonstrate before and after shots as GHS joins other district schools in requiring students to abide by a dress code.

Both students admitted they were not thrilled about the idea of giving up their normal school garb for polo shirts and khakis.

“I’m not against it,” said Lujan, but she also admits that she’s not entirely for it, either. “I’ll give it a chance,” she said.
That’s about the same attitude Becenti has, pointing out that most of his friends “don’t really like the idea.”

So what else is new.

Ben Chavez, an assistant principal at the school, said he expects a lot of students to come to school next Monday dressed in new clothes and not really being totally happy about it. But he hopes that they, like Lujan, will give the program a chance.

If they do, he expects to see a lot of changes at GHS this year — less trouble in the hallways, kids showing more respect to each other, and possibly better grades from some of them.

Banished from the school this year are gang outfits, jeans with holes in them, baggy pants and T-shirts with slogans. Instead, GHS promises to be a preppy paradise.

Students will be required to wear proper attire, which consists of polo shirts, turtlenecks and sweaters with collars on top and khakis, shorts, skorts (skirts that look like shorts), Capris and slacks on the bottom. The colors allowed for the khakis, etc., are tan, brown and navy blue.

Each class last year was allowed to chose three colors to wear on top, Chavez said, which will allow school officials and others to know at a glance what grade the wearer is.
To give seniors a reward for making it that far, said Chavez, they will be able to wear tops with stripes or plaids on them.

They will also be allowed to wear jeans on Fridays if it is accompanied by a school jersey.

Chavez said the school has spent the last several months making students and parents aware of the new dress code and have met with managers at the various clothing stores in town to make them aware of it so they will be sure to have enough in stock.

Everyone should know about it, but Chavez said he expects some students will be coming to school next Monday in clothing that is now ruled inappropriate and the school will have to sit them down and explain the new rules.

There will be warnings for those who fail to abide by the new rules and then there will be parent conferences and if that doesn’t work out, there will even be stiffer penalties, he said.

“We will have some students who will try to push the envelope, but we will be prepared,” he said.