RACINE - The students didn't all look the same at Knapp Elementary School on Tuesday, their first day back.

That was their fear.

It was the start of a new school year Tuesday for Racine Unified students. At Knapp, 2701 17th St., the students were sporting a new look thanks to the school's new, stricter dress policy.

Their shirts were pink. Some were white. Some were red and some blue. Some wore yellow. The only thing that looked the same … all their shirts had collars.

School officials decided at the end of the 2007-08 school year to implement the new policy this year as one way to address growing concerns about behavior at the school.

Students knew what to expect.

"When we found out (last year), a lot of kids said they wouldn't come back. Most of them are here this year," fifth-grader Whitney Maritch, 10, said during recess. "I think we look fine."

Teachers and staff rolled out the red carpet for the students and their families Tuesday as a way to get them all excited about the new policy. The school's staff also had a pep assembly for students to help set the tone for the upcoming year.

"We wanted the parents to see that this was a brand-new start. This was something we hadn't done before," said Knapp Principal Gayle Titus. "We can't mess around with these children's future. We want them to be successful, and we will do whatever we have to do."

Friends Jalissa Rivera and Tyshelle Summers, both 10, said they didn't call each other up and plan to dress alike. They both wore navy blue shirts and khaki skirts.

Neither girl was particularly thrilled with the idea that they would have to wear uniforms this year. But it wasn't as bad as they thought it would be.

What might be a semantics debate among adults - they call it a "dress policy"- the students all knew they wouldn't be dressing like their friends at other schools.

They were wearing uniforms.

On the playground, after lunch, it was clear that the students still knew how to let off steam and have a good time.

The uniforms were not all that bad, according to several fifth-graders interviewed during recess. Most had been students at the school the year before, when they learned about the new policy.

Some have siblings at McKinley Middle School, one of three schools in the district that have adopted stricter dress policies in recent years. Gilmore Middle School was the first Unified school to adopt uniforms.

Knapp is the only elementary school to implement such a policy. It is the district's third largest elementary school and a feeder school for McKinley.

"A lot of kids already know the drill (because of their siblings at McKinley)," Titus said. "It kind of made sense."

Cecilia Guajardo's two brothers, Alex and Pedro, had to wear uniforms at McKinley, so they told her what it would be like.

"I was kind of worried. I didn't know how the uniforms would look," said Guajardo, 10, a fifth-grader. "I feel kind of confident with this."

The Dress Policy

Knapp Elementary School's new dress policy mandates:

* Shirts with collars in certain prescribed colors, with no lettering or adornment.

* Dress pants or shorts in khaki, navy and brown. No jeans except on casual or theme days.

* For girls, pants as described above or skirts, skorts, capris or jumpers.

* There is no restrictions on shoes, coats or backpacks.

There is no penalty for noncompliance through Sept. 12. Full compliance is expected starting Sept. 15.