Emma Davis, who is from Ellicott City,
Maryland, chose to highlight the importance of mental health and suicide
prevention initiatives by crafting a fictional athleisure clothing
collection to be sold through Kohl’s in a partnership with Under Armour.
“I picked the activewear industry because your total health isn’t
just your physical health, it’s also a combination of your mental health
as well,” said Davis.
With purple and teal as the dominant color patterns in her proposed
athleisure line (a nod to the coloring of the suicide prevention
ribbon), Davis’ plan also included in-store tie-ins such as workshops,
yoga sessions and interactive activities to bring awareness to mental
health.
“Fashion can be used and applied in so many different ways, just as it can bring people together in so many ways,” Davis said.
Shaffer said participating in the competition requires extra time.
“Students really had to balance their classes, online learning and
this commitment all at once,” Shaffer said. “For Meera, Sabrina and
Emma, the hard work and Zoom calls certainly paid off.”
Each of the students cited Shaffer’s role as a faculty mentor as a
key piece of the puzzle when it came to their success. They also
highlighted the importance of the practical approach that the Department
of Fashion and Apparel Studies champions in the classroom.
“As fashion merchandising majors a lot of our academic work is
project-based, but this was literally taking what we’ve learned in the
classroom and applying it from start to finish,” said Davis. “We had to
ask ourselves: How am I going to make this product, market it, and
execute it? Moving forward, I know this experience will make us great
candidates as we go into the workforce.”
Connections and contacts
“Not only do the students receive a scholarship, but becoming part of
the FSF family really opens up a lot of doors for them,” said Shaffer,
who advises UD students interested in competing in the organization’s
case study competition.
Lee is one of several UD students who have benefitted from the
networking and mentorship opportunities available for student
competitors and winners. Through her connections with FSF, Lee secured
an internship with Ross Stores in the summer of 2020 and a full-time
position as location planning analyst after graduation.
“Each year, the organization has a gala to celebrate the student
scholarship winners,” Lee said. “What was really exciting is that last
year I actually got to meet the CEO of Ross Stores, Barbara Rentler
herself, which is really cool. That’s something I never thought I’d be
able to do by just participating in an extracurricular activity.”
Lee also benefited from the organization’s mentorship program, which
paired her with a professional buyer in the fashion industry.
“Besides just the networking aspect, programs like this help you
create close connections with people that will last a lifetime,” said
Lee of her experience.
Said Davis, “It’s not winning the scholarship and that’s just it. You’re really in this community for the long-haul.”
Department of Fashion and Apparel Studies
The UD Department of Fashion and Apparel Studies
is recognized for its rigorous undergraduate programs in fashion design
and product innovation, fashion merchandising and management,
internationally prominent graduate program, professional education
programs and award-winning scholars. The department’s strengths in
cutting-edge technology, global experiences, industry relations and
mentoring are complemented by its significant collaborations across the
University of Delaware, with international institutions and in both the
fashion and textile manufacturing industries.
Fashion Scholarship Fund
As the oldest and foremost fashion-oriented education and workforce development nonprofit in the country, the Fashion Scholarship Fund
supports the careers of the country’s most promising fashion students
from all backgrounds. It awards over $1.2 million in scholarships each
year to help students succeed in all sectors of the industry: design,
merchandising, analytics, retail, tech and supply chain. UD students
interested in participating in the 2021 Fashion Scholarship Fund case
study are encouraged to contact Brenda Shaffer.
Article by Chris Kelley; photos courtesy of Sabrina Lee, Emma Davis and Meera Kripalu
Published July 6, 2021