Imagine exiting a debate tournament with complete confidence in your flawless arguments and composed demeanor — just to lose a round due to your clothing.
For debaters, clothing is often factored into judges’ decisions during tournaments. But formal clothing isn’t always accessible for all students, which is why the Mountain View-Los Altos Speech and Debate team started the Community Closet last month.
The closet allows students to borrow formal wear free of charge, and returning the clothing is optional. It’s located in the Mountain View Teen Center and open corresponding to the Teen Center’s hours: 3:30-7 p.m. on weekdays and 1-6 p.m. on Saturdays.
“I hope that [the closet] becomes a place where … any student in our community feels comfortable going if they need professional clothing for any reason,” said Los Altos High senior Audrey Tsai, who is co-chair of MVLASD’s Diversity Equity and Inclusion Committee. “I’m hoping that … the logical first step becomes … stopping by the Mountain View Teen Center.”
The DEI committee was founded just this year and is run by Tsai and Mountain View High junior Taylor Luna, who serves as the team’s vice president and DEI committee co-chair.
“What it should come down to is how good of a speaker [you are],” Tsai said. “It’s frustrating for a lot of people to see that that’s not the only thing to [be judged on] when they’re going into a round. They’re being criticized for not wearing heels, or they’re being criticized about how they look, or what they’re wearing instead of how good their arguments are.”
Initially, the team struggled to find a space for the Community Closet. They hoped to house the closet in one of the nearby high schools, but realized those areas didn’t have enough space, which led them to reach out to the Mountain View Teen Center.
“Our biggest hurdle and challenge throughout this entire process has been finding a location to hold the community closet,” said Luna. “When … the teen center [agreed] to hold the community closet there, it helped us overcome this challenge and they’ve played a really big part in our success in this project.”
Next came the issue of receiving enough clothing donations. With the help of community members, however, the issue was quickly overcome. The closet was able to get roughly 150 clothing items, 15 shoes and 10 ties in donations within weeks.
“We didn’t think that we were going to get a lot [of donations], so I reached out to the Mountain View High School and the Los Altos High School PTSA and the Mountain View City Council,” Luna said. “They supported us immensely in getting clothing donations.”
For now, the DEI committee is focused on continuing to develop the closet. Even so, they’re still coming up with more project ideas to promote equity in speech and debate.
“We’re working on some brainstorming,” Luna said. “That will continue on after we get everything set with the community closet, but for right now this is our main focus and what we’re prioritizing.”
To donate, the Mountain View Teen Center is located at 263 Escuela Ave, Mountain View, open from 3:30-7 p.m. on weekdays and 1-6 p.m. on Saturdays.
One thought on “MVLA Speech and Debate’s Community Closet provides free formal wear to students”
How does one donate to the clothes closet?