Many students were surprised when they walked into their advisories on Monday and saw the new spirit shirts. These white, short-sleeve, oxford shirts, each embroidered with the school logo, were designed to be formal wear during special chapels and to foster a sense of unity on campus. 

Monday’s rollout and today’s test run of the new shirts during Honors Chapel raised plenty of questions among the student body as to the look and purpose of the new shirts.  Here’s what we found out.  

“When do we have to wear the shirts?”

According to the Upper School Director, Mr. Forrester, “the shirts are to be worn by all students during Honors chapels and any other special chapel throughout this school year.” Many were concerned the shirts would be required for every chapel, but this is not the case. 

“Do I have to wear anything else with them?”

They can be worn with any dress code bottoms. They also may be worn with a jacket or sweatshirt over them.  

“Why is the Upper School starting this initiative now?”

When asked why the school decided to implement use of the new shirts, Mr. Forrester responded that the idea was to foster a “spirit of togetherness. School spirit here at Saint Stephen’s continues to live on this year, and the shirts allow us to honor our seniors.”

Mr. Forrester encourages a good attitude from all students as they sport the new SSES merch. 

After the conversation with Mr. Forrester, it was clear that student opinion on the matter varied.  Senior Evanthia Stirou said: “You can make them look good if you really try.”

But while some were excited, others were not as thrilled. “They are not everyone’s look,” sophomore Sarabeth Wester said. 

Senior Jacob Gekht agreed. “I look like I’m about to be deployed,” Gekht said, gazing down at his olive green shirt (seniors’ shirts are green and many said they look slightly military-like). 

While opinions are mounting in upper school about the new outfits, be sure to keep an open mind.  It will take time to see if the new threads foster the community and professionalism that they were intended for.