Dear Editor,

It is my senior year at Altoona Area High School and the most talked about topic this year has been graduation gowns. As you may know,  Altoona has changed the rules about the color of our gowns this year. In previous years, boys wore maroon and girls wore white. This year all genders wear maroon. I think that it is unfair that we all have to wear maroon, and we don’t even get a choice. 

The Altoona Mirror said, “The change was spurred by an apparent inequality resulting from representing the school’s maroon and white colors by male and female graduates.” Instead of punishing everyone I believe that females should wear white, males maroon, and if you choose to be one or the other than you get to pick which color you wear. 

“White gowns required white dresses underneath and white shoes because any other color dress would stand out.” This was another issue brought up by our school about white gowns. It would be a simple fix if we could wear nude, maroon or white shoes. Giving options would be less of a hassle for students. White dresses are also not that hard to find online or in stores, especially in April. 

I understand that we must go through trial and error and that not everyone is going to be happy. At the same time, I don’t think the majority should be punished for a problem with the minority. I think that our school should at least look at other options maybe not for my class, but for the classes graduating after me. 

Kayla Moyer