Welcome back to a week of academic outfits. Each week, someone fashionable in higher ed will show us what they wear! This week, Hailey, a rhetoric and communication scholar, shows us what an assistant professor wears!
Hailey (she/they) is an Assistant Professor in Communication with an emphasis in Rhetoric. She’s also a committed dog mom to Gordo the Miniature Schnauzer. “I write about the body positivity movement, which fashion is a huge part of, so plus-size fashion is a topic of passion for me.”
On field norms: I think because Communication Studies spans the social sciences and the humanities, there is a lot of variety across region/event/institution/department. I’ve been the most overdressed in certain situations and the most underdressed/informal in others. Overall, I’d say I generally play with the norms a bit. For example, I think a common professional “uniform” in my field would be slacks, a nice blouse, and maybe a blazer. I definitely wear a variation of this, but I’ll make it fun with patterns. When I was on the job market, I remember the general consensus being that I should wear a matching suit. Instead, I rocked a blazer and striped dress pants.
What an assistant professor wears: Putting on my professor “costume” makes me feel more confident and excited about the work I do, whether that’s writing, teaching, going to meetings, etc. It helps me get in the right headspace and allows me to show a certain side of myself to my colleagues and students that feels equal parts authentic and deliciously performative (that’s the queer theorist in me coming out).
My favorite item is my black mockneck tank top (I actually have two, one is ribbed). It’s a super flexible item that goes with the vast majority of my professional bottoms, and I just feel so “me” in it. It’s great for layering but also wearing on its own when I get hot (which I do a lot due to various disabilities and medications). Being able to strip down to a tank when I’m teaching or doing other professional activities is really important in terms of meeting my sensory needs!
The teaching outfit: This is one of my favorite teaching outfits. I’ll often wear it when I’m feeling a more masc energy. I tend to cultivate a pretty non-hierarchical relationship with my students because I want to encourage them to be vulnerable and take risks. But I do find it fun to use professional dress as a sort of visual boundary between myself and my students. So even when I’ve worked in departments where people dress pretty casually, I almost always dress up a little bit (whether that be via dress pants/trousers, blazers, etc). To me, it’s a more fun way of communicating my role as professor than going by “Dr.” or having a lot of disciplinary measures in the classroom.
Finding great plus-size clothes: The biggest challenge was figuring out how to dress my fat body in a way that felt authentic, comfortable, and professional in a world with very limited plus-size clothing options. I remember being so excited to attend my first academic conference and then breaking down in tears when it came to pack for it because I didn’t have any clothes I felt good in and didn’t know where to look for them (on top of never quite looking the part of “professional” because of my fatness). Following fat fashion influencers and content creators really helped open my eyes to different possibilities and inspired me to play with fashion rather than feel imprisoned by it.
I think every item featured in these photos (from head to toe, with the exception of my Tevas and the green shirt, which is Old Navy) is from Torrid. Like I said, limited options. But Torrid seems to be higher quality than other options, relatively consistent with sizing, and more targeted to my age range (early 30s). They were kind of in a rut of florals, skulls, and cold shoulder tops for a while, but they seem to be catching up with the times a bit more.
A comfy writing outfit: This is my main writing day outfit (when I don’t opt for athleisure). Since I usually teach Tuesday/Thursday, I try to make Mondays big writing days. The book isn’t going to write itself! Even though I haven’t been a dress person in the past, I find them a necessity in the hot, humid months here in Maryland. A midi length dress with bike shorts underneath is perfect no matter where I decide to write–my home office, campus office, or a coffee shop.
The Tevas pictured here are indicative of all the walking I do on writing days. I have a connective tissue disorder and sitting for too long makes me prone to joint subluxations. So I make sure to break up my writing chunks with long walks (usually with my dog, Gordo)!
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I love her style & this series so much!
Yay! Thank you for reading!
אוהבת את הסדרה
thank you!!