School uniforms

Question:
How many public schools require school uniforms?

Response:

In the 2017–18 school year, 20 percent of public schools required that students wear uniforms.

In 2017–18, a greater percentage of primary schools than of middle schools required students to wear uniforms (23 vs. 18 percent), and both percentages were greater than the percentage of high schools requiring uniforms (10 percent). A greater percentage of public schools in cities than of those in suburban areas, towns, and rural areas reported in 2017–18 that they required students to wear uniforms. A greater percentage of schools where 76 percent or more of the students were eligible for free or reduced-price lunch (FRPL) than of schools where lower percentages of the students were eligible reported that they required school uniforms.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. (2020). Indicators of School Crime and Safety: 2019 (NCES 2020-063), Safety and Security Practices at Public Schools.

Related Tables and Figures:  (Listed by Release Date)

• 2021, Report on Indicators of School Crime and Safety: 2020, Safety and Security Practices at Public Schools, Figure 2. Percentage of public schools that used selected safety and security measures: School years 1999–2000, 2015–16, and 2017–18
  
• 2020, Digest of Education Statistics 2019, Table 233.50. Percentage of public schools with various safety and security measures: Selected years, 1999–2000 through 2017–18
  
• 2020, Digest of Education Statistics 2019, Table 233.60. Percentage of public schools with various safety and security measures, by selected school characteristics: 2017–18
  

Other Resources:  (Listed by Release Date)

• 2021, Crime and Safety Surveys (CSS): This site provides access to publications and data on school crime and safety.