Tag: St George’s School

Even if you were sexist at St. George’s, much of the responsibility for creating the culture of the school rests on the adults in charge. You weren’t the one who thought up school-required situations like “Casino Night” where the new girls — 13-, 14-, and 15-year-olds — dressed as Playboy bunnies and pretended to hand out cigarettes and candy to our male classmates, dressed as blackjack dealers.

Beginning shortly after girls were admitted, new female students (in either the ninth or tenth grade) served as “bunnies,” an ostensible honor that required that they don Playboy costumes—leotards, bunny tails, and ears—and act as servers for the predominantly male student body and faculty who enjoyed casino games as the girls dispensed fake cigarettes and cigars. At least some students recalled that Dolly Howard, then Dean of Female Students, may have held onto the bunny costumes and accessories year-to-year and distributed them to the female students. Some recall that all new students wore the costumes, while others recall that girls were selected based on perceived attractiveness.