Sit-Down Dress-down

A treasured tradition at Deerfield, sit-down dinners are a time when an assortment of Deerfield students congregate to share a family-style dinner. We can meet other students who seem completely different from ourselves. However, despite the welcome connections we form through these meals, sit-down dinner is also a stressful interruption in our very busy evening. A way to relieve this burden would be to have sit-down in casual dress instead of class dress. As minor as this may seem, this will make the sit-down experience more relaxing and enjoyable.

After all, aren’t sit-down dinners modeled after family dinners? No one at home sits around in blazers and cardigans, so casual dress would create an atmosphere more like home. In addition to regaining the time lost from changing clothes, students would also be more comfortable and have a faster transition from dinner to studying, which is crucial to academic achievement.

Having casual dress for sit-down dinners would make dinner less of a rush and more of an enjoyable occasion. We would appreciate the experiences that come with dinner more, and becoming more of a family and community.