Timeline created by Alexa Manly

In high schools today, students wear patterned pajama pants, baggy sweatpants and over-sized hoodies, blue jeans and short skirts, tiny crop tops, skin tight spandex, slippers or slides, sweaters and leggings. Within the last twenty years, high school fashion has changed drastically, following the trends posted on social media. Trends that were popular 20 years ago are now making their comeback amidst current trends.

Currently a sophomore at Westerville North High School, Quinlan Manly says he also sees lots of pajamas, hoodies and the rare pair of jeans and t-shirts. Manly’s daily school attire follows some of the main trends, consisting of sweatpants, hoodies, t-shirts, and on the warmer days athletic shorts. 

Within the last ten years, fashion has changed more than it seems. Clothes that are commonly seen in high schools now, like pajamas and sweats, used to be casual wear for the home. Everyday delicate jewelry used to be statement necklaces. Sneakers are now worn almost daily, but used to be a rare occurrence.

Hannah Mossing is a 2014 Perrysburg High School graduate, who is a teacher at Westerville North and also works at Anthropologie.

“We wore a lot of awful statement necklaces that were really bold,” Mossing said. “I never used to wear sneakers casually with jeans, I’d wear them with leggings and running shorts because they weren’t as popular.”

Twenty years ago, students at Westerville North wore dressy clothing. 

Jessica Manly is a 2001 graduate from Westerville North High School and a mother to two high school age teens,“I wore khakis most of the time, sweaters, button up shirts,” Manly said. 

Trends from Jessica’s  time in high school have made a comeback. “Flare pants are back in, the bigger wider belts, doc martens were in and babydoll tees [are worn to school now, not just out socially],” she said.

Fashion trends ebb and flow with the times, following what the celebrities are wearing and what companies claim to be trendy. However, clothes seen in high schools today are either small, tight and revealing, or are baggy and should be worn to bed.

“Sociologists and fashion historians claim that this slip down the ‘less is more’ slope began in the Roaring 1920’s where cropped-haired flappers began wearing shorter and tighter dresses,” Mark Gregston said in his article Modesty Matters. 

When adults wear something out in public, it opens the doors for young people to learn what kind of attire is appropriate for them to wear out of the house.