How ridiculous, you have my sympathy.
Surely an art teacher, working daily with messy materials like paint
and clay cannot be expected to wear the same sort of clothing as a
teacher standing at the front of the classroom. I would have thought
smart casual wear would do, even for more formal occasions like
parents evenings.

Is there any way you can 'cheat'?
When my daughter (who is even more button phobic than I am) had to
wear a formal blouse, I managed to cut off all the buttons and sew
the blouse shut - apart from the neck where I put some velcro so she
could get it on and off :-) This might work even better for a man as
any seams would be hidden by a tie.

Best wishes
Barbara


> No my deepening revulsion was very mild as a child but incresed
through my twenties and
> thirties. I'm now an art teacher in his mid forties who finds
Buttons and those things I
> associate inextricably with buttons, like formal shirts,
disgusting in the way you might find
> being dished up a plate of fresh green mucus for the soup course
disgusting.
> For twenty years I've worked for a series of headmasters who have
taken a similar line
> towards creative departments as those in industry do, which is to
allow them to express
> their individuallity. Who wants their art teacher to look like a
sales rep. anyway.
> The new head at our school is not of that ilk however and
requires all male staff to wear a
> shirt and tie. I've explained the situation of my phobia to him
but he is unsympathetic and
> has threatenen me with formal disciplinary proceedings unless I
can assure him I will wear
> a shirt and tie within ten days. At present my union feel there
may be grounds for protest
> as he has not required formal dress from female staff. But there
are plenty of Employment
> tribunal cases which have not gone favourably as precedents so it
looks possible I may
> have to look for another job and leave a school I've loved
teaching at for twenty years.