Hi:

This interview/essay with the President of Morehouse University, a historically black college for men, on their dress code, is quite timely for our list serve discussion.

I found this interview/essay on Inside Higher Ed, a website for those interested in higher ed careers.  

"What the Morehouse Man Wears"
http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2009/10/19/morehouse
    
College bans caps, do-rags and saggy pants, and largely receives student support -- but faces criticism from gay group over restriction on women's clothing.

Best,

Bertie





________________________________
From: Katherine Mercurio Gotthardt <katherine.gotthardt at gmail.com>
To: The Diversity and Literacy Discussion List <diversity at nifl.gov>
Sent: Sat, October 24, 2009 1:01:33 PM
Subject: [Diversity 1151] Re: My concluding thoughts about dress codes, boundaries, ethics, social class and culture

Michael and others, I truly appreciate your thoughts on this topic.  Yes, we have had this conversation before in other ways, but attacking it from this angle has been enlightening.



On Sat, Oct 24, 2009 at 1:54 AM, Michael Gyori <tesolmichael at yahoo.com> wrote:

Hello to all,

>

>This conversation string has been quite a lengthy and lively one, dating back to when there was a discussion about burkas, if not even earlier.

>

>There are only a few more thoughts I feel inclined to contribute to the discussion: 

>	1. As long as instruction is truly student-centered with instructional goals and desired life outcomes aligned with and incorporated into the curriculum, we're off to a promising start.  Of course, some learners may develop a sense of what they wish to happen in their lives as a result of the learning that occurs. 

>	2. We all exude a "presence" to which others respond, I sense by and large unconsciously.  For example, how we dress and why we do so can have a variety of underlying reasons: the desire to make a strong and deeply-felt statement or belief on one end of a contiuum, perhaps, and a simple sense of comfort in our attire on the other. Human beings will respond accordingly.

>	3. The fact that I dress informally (albeit modestly), is not intended (nor do I believe received) as attire my students should aspire to wear.  I am I, and my students are "they." 

>	4. If a learner wishes to engage in a life domain with the least of potential friction, I may advise him or her to dress in a manner completely unlike the one I am in. Should I choose to live in conditions in which my present attire is glaringly in opposition to the attire associated with a particular culture, I will change it lest it strongly conflicts with values that I embrace.  I will not wear a Gestapo uniform if my surroundings demand it.  My choice in that case will be to initiate resistance or leave such a setting. I don't know what I would do, because I have never consciously been in such circumstances

>	5. As for attire that signals to me that it carries signs of oppression (say of gender), the setting becomes much more challenging if one chooses to participate in it. I am not engaged in such settings, perhaps because I am not drawn to them, perhaps because they are they drawn to me, or more likely, a combination of the two.  That said, there may be fundamental moral issues associated with "endorsing" practices simply by not questioning, even challenging them.

>On the level of human coexistence, matters can become quite delicate on one level, yet remain quite simple on another (in my opinion).

> 

>If we could only dance in harmony...

> 

>Michael

> 

>Michael A. Gyori 

>Maui International Language School 

>www.mauilanguage.com

>

>

>

>

>

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-- 
Katherine Mercurio Gotthardt
Community Writer for NEWS AND MESSENGER
www.insidenova.com
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