Team was punished when student wore bikini in the lab
The engineering students banned from working on their race car at the University of Waterloo were let back into their design space early, but not until after they were prevented from racing in Michigan. The entire Formula SAE team was banned from using the Student Design Centre after a female team member posed in a bikini and high heels beside the car they were building. Engineering Dean Adel Sedra told Maclean’s at the time that he punished the team because bikinis aren’t appropriate attire for the workplace. However, some students said the Dean was wrong to suggest how women may or may not dress on campus. Others took issue with the fact that the entire team was punished for the indiscretion of a few. Peter Teertstra, director of the Student Design Centre, told The Waterloo Region Record on Friday that the punishment was lifted early because of the students’ “positive attitude[s] about what happened.” He also said that letting students back in early had nothing to do with the public outcry in response to their punishment.