Hats or No Hats: Students Have Differing Opinions

Since the early 2000s, students wearing hats during the school day has been a big problem with teachers and administration.

Critics say that the issue with hats is that it is disrespectful to wear hats indoors, and that it may promote a gang culture at Dimond.

However, the students in favor of administration letting people wear hats during school hours believe hats should be allowed for a wide variety of reasons.

Freshman Maeve Wiley is a strong supporter of Dimond letting students wear hats at school.

“I think that hats should be allowed at school because the only ‘bad idea’ they are giving is that Dimond does not trust its students enough to even wear an accessory as simple as a hat.  They cannot just assume we are in a gang because we are covering up our bad hair,” Wiley said.

Wiley also had a well thought-out answer when asked about if hats would actually promote a gang culture.

“No, I don’t think it would promote a gang culture, because when people wear hats outside of school, people don’t assume they’re in a gang.  So, why should administration assume we are in a gang if we wear a hat during school?.”

Plus, there are some obvious reasons why students at Dimond should be allowed to wear hats at school.

“Well, it’s Alaska and it’s cold outside.  Hats also complement lots of outfits, and can save students for embarrassment if they had a bad hair dye job,”  Wiley said.

Freshman Lucas Liland also felt that wearing hats at school should be allowed.

“If Dimond believes that it’s ‘dangerous’, then they shouldn’t have special spirit days like ‘Hat Day’.  They should also just give students ‘hat passes’ for donating cans to a charity, or if they want to help a sports program.”

When Liland found out that South Anchorage High School allows its students to wear hats, he became livid.

“Why should one school in the Anchorage School District be allowed to let its students wear hats?  If one school can do it, then all the schools should be able to.  I see no harm in allowing hats.”

Freshman Isaac Villeda thinks that Dimond is doing just fine in their policy of students not being able to wear hats during school hours.

“I think if Dimond allows people to wear hats at school, it will be hard to regulate what kinds of hats could be worn, which could be hard on staff members.”

“Plus, what’s the point of wearing a hat indoors?  It’s not like it’s going to start raining all of the sudden,” Villeda said.

Freshman Dathan Jefferies thought that Isaac’s ideas are right, along with one other reason.

“Wearing a hat during the pledge is super disrespectful, there is a reason why at sporting events they say to take your hat off for the anthem.  Also, hats could be a cover up for a student falling asleep during class, which will probably affect how they do in school,” he said.

Overall, it seems like some of the students at Dimond are torn on whether or not hats should be allowed to be worn at school.