A high school tucked in the northeast corner of Thailand is relaxing the public school system’s strict rules to allow teachers and students to choose their uniforms according to their gender identity.
The Sriboonruang Wittayakarn School in Nong Bua Lamphu province is getting props for endorsing a teacher’s preference for trousers instead of long skirts – and extending the same freedom to students.
“The first experience of working while dressed according to one’s gender identity brings a clear sense of liberation,” Thai language teacher Patumporn Jantarak wrote. “The clothes I wear no longer diminish my self-worth, and the more equality there is, the more I can truly be myself.”
News of the change in school dress code spread after Patumporn posted a photo posing in the traditionally male government uniform and thanked the school for approving a request to wear it.
The school also announced that its new policy also applied to students, who have long been held to strict codes for how they dress and wear their hair.
“Sriboonruang Witthayakarn School in Nong Bua Lamphu province is open-minded and accepting of gender diversity,” it said in a statement. “Students and teachers are allowed to dress according to their gender identity.”
Principal Natchai Biaokeb said that he accepts the diverse range of genders seen in modern society and wants everyone to express their true selves. Therefore, he held a meeting with the teachers to discuss a happier workplace.
“In the current era, there has been a change in the acceptance of gender diversity,” he said. “I want everyone to work happily.”
After submitting the uniform request Friday, Patumporn shared the school’s approval online, which was liked and shared thousands of times.
Subsequently, the school acknowledged that three students who identify as transgender had requested accommodation. The school said it granted them permission after consulting with their parents. The school noted another 10 students seeking to dress and wear their hair as they prefer.
Relaxing draconian dress codes is a chief complaint of the student reform movement. While uniforms haven’t gone away, a number of higher education institutions in recent years have introduced gender choice.
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