A Catholic school uniform in North America typically consists of a pleated and plaid skirt or jumper (a sleeveless dress), Mary Jane or saddle shoes, a button-down shirt, and a sweater for girls, while boys' uniforms consist of a button-down shirt, a necktie, and dark pants. Actual school uniforms vary widely by location and individual school. In contrast to most schools in the United States, almost all Catholic schools in that country have some form of dress code, and most of them (especially those with students in the lower grade levels) have a mandatory uniform policy. In most Commonwealth countries, school uniforms (often similar to the "Catholic school uniform" type in the United States) are common in all types of schools, whether secular or not and regardless of religious denomination. In most schools in Latin America, school uniforms are common and their design is often very similar to the Catholic school uniform type from the United States. Purpose of school uniforms The stated purpose of uniforms, often set forth in school uniform policies, include reducing clothing expenditures for parents as well as avoiding distinctions among children based on whose parents can afford to buy them fashionable clothing to wear to school. The school attire is also said to reduce distractions and help with student identification, ensuring that a stranger will stand out among the uniformed students. Clothing is definitely one of the more significant aspects of the Catholic symbolic repertoire. It’s associated with liturgy, status, and people’s relationship to material objects. It helps define the religious body, or the leadership of the Catholic Church, and how people have muted their individualism in their commitment to the church. It has conveyed a sense of community, solidarity, and allegiance. In North America Until the early to mid-1970s, the uniform for girls almost always consisted of a skirt or jumper; but it is now common, in the United States, for female pupils to wear uniform shorts or slacks, depending on the weather. This is mainly the result of changing societal norms that, beginning in the late 1960s to early 1970s, resulted in a trend for women and girls in most levels of society to wear trousers and shorts, instead of skirts and dresses, for everyday life. Today, most schools require girls to wear skirts, while others allow girls the choice of skirts, dress or culottes and pants including ankle pants that stop at