SCHOOL UNIFORM POLICY

Note: Please read the attached letter regarding school uniform policy for the start of school year September 2009 - click HERE

At Island Academy students are expected to wear the official school uniform at all times during the school day. All uniforms will be available directly from the school except the Secondary Skirt. The Secondary Skirt can be purchased at

Ankidos
Lower Nevis Street
St. Johns
462-1192

The use of a uniform provides many advantages to our students, including safety, pride, and equal status. Our uniform allows our students to be on equal footing, as family income is not transparent when students all wear the same uniform. Furthermore, students are more easily able to concentrate on their classroom activities and learning when they do not have to worry about accessorizing their uniforms or choosing what to wear to school each morning.

An added bonus of having a school uniform is that our staff can easily identify any person who does not belong in our building. This also means that visiting children or new students who have yet to purchase the uniform are easily identified and can be looked after by the entire IA community either while on campus visiting or while in the settling in phase of their new life at IA. Finally, since all staff know one another, the use of the uniform means that any stranger on campus is easy to identify. This is particularly important as we build a Pre-Kinder through High School single campus community. All teachers in the primary can easily identify the secondary school students, and thus ensure that the family we have at IA is easily and instantly recognizable.

Primary Uniform:

Girls: Navy blue skort (no more than two inches above the knee), white fitted blouse with cap sleeve, Blue shell dress (being phased out) and black dress shoes with white ankle socks.

Boys: Navy blue shorts or khaki shorts (the latter being phased out), white polo shirt with the school crest on it, black dress shoes and belt.

Primary PE Uniform:

Females: Navy blue drawstring shorts, white t-shirt with the IA logo, white socks and running shoes
Males: Navy blue drawstring shorts, white t-shirt with the IA logo, white socks and running shoes

Secondary Uniform

There are two uniforms for Secondary School students, the semi-formal every day uniform and the “formal” uniform for special school days:

Formal Males: Navy blue trouser, white button-up dress shirt, blue school tie, black dress shoes and black belt.

Formal Females: Navy blue skirt (with bottom hem no farther than two inches above the knee), white fitted shirt with quarter length sleeve, blue school tie, black dress shoes and white ankle socks.

Semi-formal Males: Nave blue trouser, white polo shirt with the IA school crest logo, black dress shoes and black belt.

Semi-formal Females: Navy blue skirt (with the bottom hem no farther than two inches above the knee) , white polo shirt with the IA school crest, black dress shoes and white ankle socks.

Either secondary school uniform option (formal or semi-formal) may be worn on regular school days. However, certain occasions such as exams and special assemblies will require all students to wear the formal uniform on those particular days. Undershirts or t-shirts, which are only to be worn under uniform shirts, are to be entirely white and the undershirt sleeves should not show under either the button down shirts or the IA polo shirts.

Students are not to add accessorize the uniform.

Grooming

Boys’ hair must be styled in a manner so that it does not fall below the bottom of the collar and is not a colour or style that is distracting or interferes with learning (e.g. hair over eyes). No “tails” are permitted. Ear studs and earrings are strictly forbidden for male students.

Girls’ hairstyles should not be of a colour or style that distracts or interferes with learning. No make-up or nail polish is to be applied. Girls are permitted to wear one small pair of earrings (stud or small loop only).

Alternative Dress Day

Students may participate in alternative dress days to be held on the last Friday of each month. Students who wish to participate will pay a fee of $3EC. This money will be collected by homeroom teachers and sent to the office where it will be placed in the school development fund. Students who participate in alternative dress day must abide by the code as stated below.

Students may wear denim or blue jeans as part of their attire. Sleeveless shirts, blouses and dresses are permitted so long as they cover the width of the shoulder. Shirts and blouses should also be long enough to be tucked into pants/skirts to ensure that the student's belly is covered. Tank tops, or blouses/shirts with thin or spaghetti straps are not permitted at any time. Undergarments may not be visible at any time as well.

Although some variation in style may be permitted, it is important for students to understand that they may not wear clothing that is frayed or has holes. Articles of clothing that carry motifs advertising or promoting alcohol, tobacco, drugs or sexually suggestive and obscene language are also not allowed.

Shoes or sandals with back strap and wide cover over the instep may be worn. “Flip flops” or single plug style sandals are not permitted at any time. If a student does not respect these requirements, their parents will be called to bring in to school appropriate clothing, and the student will wait in the office until the appropriate clothing is brought to them.

Please remember that "Alternative Dress Days" are intended to be fun, but proper decorum must be exercised.

Thank you all for your cooperation, and any questions about the alternative dress day policy should be addressed directly to the Administration.

Violations of the School Uniform Policy

It is important that the entire faculty (teachers, administration, all IA staff) combine to work out acceptable and reasonable levels of reaction to violations of the uniform code, and this can only be done when all the faculty are together the last week of August. Therefore, the School administration and the IA faculty will work out in August appropriate disciplinary actions regarding violations of the school uniform policy. These rules and regulations will be given to IA families when school begins again in September.

Thank you for your understanding of our need to work together as a team to make informed, collective decision’s which all faculty can support and enforce.

We are sure that we will come up with simple and fair rules that will be easy for students to follow and for parents to understand, and we would like to thank IA families in advance for their cooperation in this manner.