1st Place, News Story
2021-22, Division 4, News Writing
By Jude Sears
The Cougar Crier
Annapolis HS
Is it more important to respect the individuality of students than it is to preserve a long-standing tradition? Since the very first graduation ceremo- ny at Annapolis High School in 1967, graduating males wore blue caps and gowns, while females wore yellow. This year, the Class of 2023 will be the first graduating class in AHS his- tory to be able to choose their cap and gown colors. Going forward, the Class of 2024 will collectively wear one color to their graduation ceremony.
Principal Aaron Mollett allowed students to choose their cap and gown colors when a student reached out to him.
“It was talked about before, and then a student emailed, asking if it could be looked into, so I looked into it a little bit and said, ‘Why not allow people to choose?’” said Mollett.
This updated policy aims to relieve students of the discomfort that may be caused by wearing an outfit that directly corresponds to a certain gender. This change also caters to students who did not like the color dedicated to their gender.
“Some people don’t like the yellow [caps and gowns]. I guess it’s not too appealing to them,” said Mollett.
While some students were given permission to wear the cap and gown opposite to the one they were assigned in the past, the freedom to choose your color no longer confines graduating students to choosing between either ‘male’ or ‘female’.
The executive decision to break away from this Annapolis tradition was made at the request of senior Audreonna Cluesman. Cluesman brought up this issue alongside a few of her fellow students a few times, advocating for the previously mentioned reform.
“So, I brought it up to [English teacher Amanda Steger], and asked her if maybe that could be a Leadership project, and she told me that it could be just as simple as sending Mr. Mollett an email,” said Cluesman.
Cluesman proceeded to email Mollett with a request asking that students no longer have to wear their caps and gowns in accordance with their gender, to which he accepted.
Student reception to this news has been largely positive. “I haven’t heard any complaints about the changes made so far,” said Cluesman. “I’ve heard some people tell me they’re going to stick to what the color has always been for them, just because it’s what they want to wear… But I’m glad now, at least for the people who don’t want to [wear the color that would be assigned to them], there is the opportunity to say, ‘I don’t want this color; I want this color instead,’” Cluesman added.
The option to choose the color of one’s cap and gown will only be presented for the Class of 2023.
The color options presented will remain the same as the ones from years past: blue and yellow, which match Annapolis’ school colors. The Class of 2024 will all wear the same color to graduation. It is likely that all following classes will continue to wear one color to create a new tradition without having to adhere to the gendered choices.
Former Principal and current Di- rector of K-12 Virtual Learning Cheryl Howard said she was in conversation with Jostens, the company responsible for selling and distributing school merchandise, about producing bicolor caps and gowns, featuring both blue and gold to make a unisex outfit. This plan did not leave the early brainstorming stage, however.
“We did not implement that as I moved to virtual for this school year,” said Howard.
Annapolis High School aims to become a moreinclusive and welcoming place for its students, and this breakaway from tradition is a significant step in the direction of its goal. As student pushback in- creases regarding gendered elements of school life, questions are raised about how Annapolis could work even harder to make students feel comfortable. If the individuality of students is more important than the preservation of long-standing traditions, then what else can District 7 change with that knowledge in mind?
NW-02. News Story
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