After nearly three hours in the relentless heat early one afternoon this month, La’Candie Block had still not reached the doors of Uniforms by Logo Express on Gentilly Boulevard. She wiped the sweat from her brow, leaned against the building and let out a sigh.
She planned to spend at least $160 per child on uniforms—a huge expense for a working mother of two. But she had no choice: Most public charter schools in New Orleans not only require their students to wear uniforms, but many also require parents to purchase them from specialty stores like Uniforms by Logo Express.
“There are no other options,” Block said.
School uniforms have long been a staple of New Orleans’ education system, from private Catholic schools to public charter schools. School administrators say they promote discipline and reduce bullying. For students, the plaid skirts, khaki pants and shirts with the school logo can be a source of pride.
But uniforms can also put a strain on families, with parents forced to stand in long lines in the August heat and pay high prices for clothes their children will soon outgrow. Critics say schools add to the stress by enforcing elaborate uniform rules and forcing parents to buy the clothes from specific suppliers rather than shopping online or at discount stores.
Mother Brittany Davis also got caught in the Logo Express queue this month.
She had already spent about $450 on pants for her three children in New Orleans charter schools, but she needed another shirt — and Logo Express is the schools’ exclusive retailer.
“It’s very expensive and the lines are ridiculous,” she said. “It’s like that every year.”
Specific rules, high costs
Charter schools in New Orleans are public, but many have a dress code similar to that of private schools.
Uniform requirements vary, but most of the city’s charter schools require students to wear approved T-shirts with school logos, which typically cost more than $20 each.
Shirts for students at New Orleans Military and Maritime Academy cost a minimum of $36.99. At New Orleans Charter Science and Math High School, students must wear royal blue, white or orange polo shirts with the school logo, which cost between $22 and $28.
At Sophie B. Wright Charter High School, girls must wear all-black penny loafers and plaid pleated skirts — available at Young Fashions Uniforms for $50 — and short-sleeved blouses that cost between $19 and $23. The shirt must be monogrammed with the student’s name, which costs an additional $9.
Students in grades 5 through 8 at Arthur Ashe Charter School must purchase polo shirts made of “Dri-FIT” material from Logo Express and wear closed-toe shoes in black, white, royal blue or gray, according to a two-page letter to families outlining the school uniform requirements.
At Inspire NOLA charter schools, students who violate the dress code face disciplinary action starting with detention, according to an online policy document.
Orleans Parish School Board member Olin Parker noted that many charter providers don’t give their students the option to purchase a cheaper shirt and iron on a patch with the school logo. While many schools offer free uniforms to students who need them, some families may not want it to be known that they need help, he said.
During a board discussion in April about dress code at a new district-run school, Parker said school uniforms could be a financial burden.
“I think it’s difficult for some of our families to buy five shirts that cost $20,” he said. “And if they can buy five shirts at Walmart that cost $8, that would remove that hurdle for them.”
Exclusive contracts
Most charter schools in New Orleans — including KIPP New Orleans, InspireNOLA, Collegiate Academies, ReNEW and FirstLine — sign exclusive contracts with the retailer, said Dave Weber, marketing manager at Uniforms by Logo Express. Under those contracts, the schools send parents exclusively to Logo Express, which agrees to stock the schools’ branded apparel.
According to the company’s contract with Collegiate Academies, if the charter network violates the agreement, the uniform shop can issue cease-and-desist orders, seek injunctive relief, and “use other means necessary to enforce the violation of the agreements.”
Charter school representatives argued that the contracts were necessary to ensure that stores offer their uniforms.
Sivi Domango, chief equity officer of FirstLine Schools, said the agreement with Logo Express guarantees families more choices with more pricing options. And Quo Vadis Sylve Hollins, a spokesman for KIPP New Orleans, said they have a contract with Logo Express because the stores “offer reasonable prices” and “provide help to those who need it.”
Weber said Logo Express has taken several steps to save parents long waits, including encouraging parents to shop early through a summer installment plan and early bird discounts, and selling on-site during some schools’ orientations. Parents can make appointments online to skip the line, and the retailer is also looking for a fourth location to reduce crowding, Weber said.
However, critics say it is not always a good idea to buy uniforms early. Parents may want to wait to see if a spot opens up at another school or if their children have growth spurts over the summer before buying uniforms.
Melissa Frances, an organizer with the parents’ rights group Step Up Louisiana, said families face many obstacles just trying to equip their children for school.
“If you want to buy a uniform, parents have to stand in line for hours in the heat,” she says. “Sometimes people have to take days off work.”
Deeply rooted tradition
Although purchasing a uniform is a hassle, many parents say they still prefer it.
Although families occasionally complain about the cost, a survey of FirstLine parents several years ago found that most wanted to keep their uniforms. The charter operator also tries to ease the burden on families by selling $10 T-shirts as an alternative to the official Logo Express shirts and by giving students a grace period at the beginning of the school year before the dress code is enforced.
“If you just want to send your child to school without a uniform until you can get one, then send them to school anyway because we want your child there,” Domango said.
Domango said uniforms save parents from having to spend money on the latest fashion trends and reduce cliques and bullying. They also create unity in a school whose students come from all over the city.
“It’s not just a T-shirt,” she said. “It unites us as a school, it unites us as a network.”
Alex Jarrell, who was principal of Booker T. Washington High School when it was converted to a charter school, said he initially lobbied against uniforms, but parents overwhelmingly opposed them.
“They said, ‘We want uniforms, it’s tradition,'” said Jarrell, who is now CEO of Ben Franklin High School, one of the few charter schools without a uniform requirement. “It helped strengthen the school’s identity.”
