---
title: "Curfews, Dress Codes and Cookery Classes"
date: 2024-03-06T05:30:00-05:00
author: University of Maryland
canonical_url: "https://today.umd.edu/curfews-dress-codes-and-cookery-classes"
section: Articles
---
# Curfews, Dress Codes and Cookery Classes

*March 6, 2024* — by [Karen Shih ’09](/author/karen-shih)


> This Women’s History Month, Revisit Rules, Restrictions Co-eds Faced at UMD in Decades Past

*Women in dorm 1920x1080 — Female students studying and getting ready in a UMD dorm room in 1951. Until the 1970s, women were expected to follow strict dress codes at all times, abide by curfews and study just a few subjects, including home economics and teaching.*

If wearing your hair loose in front of men and keeping your lights on past 10:30 p.m. was enough to get female students kicked out of the University of Maryland, campus would be much emptier today.


*newspaper clipping: Explusion of Coed From College Backed By Court — Newspaper clipping on a court ruling supporting the university’s decision to expel Vivian Simpson for smoking and wearing a kimono at an improper time.*




**Topics:** [Campus & Community](https://today.umd.edu/tags/campus-community)


**Tags:** [Gender](https://today.umd.edu/topic/gender), [History](https://today.umd.edu/topic/history), [Student Experience](https://today.umd.edu/topic/student-experience)