A $100,000 award given to the Fashion Merchandising and Design program last June has bloomed into student scholarships and a study tour in New York City this spring.

Last year, the program received a $100,000 award by clothier The Gap and ICON360 - a non-profit arm of Harlem’s Fashion Row - as part of their “Closing the Gap” initiative, launched to provide financial support to fashion programs at historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs.)

Since then, the fashion merchandising program, in the Department of Family and Consumer Sciences, has allocated a portion of the award for travel funds to help send twelve students and two faculty members on a “domestic travel study tour” of New York City in March. Their purpose: to allow students the opportunity to gain access, exposure and insight to one of the world’s major fashion capitals.

“As Black students, it’s often challenging to get into the industry,” said Devona Dixon, Ph.D., an associate professor in the program. “Networking is very important. However, access early on is also very important. Giving students the opportunity to travel to New York, meet these professionals first-hand, experience the hustle & bustle of the city; I’ve just always thought that would be an enriching, eye-opening experience for the students.”

According to the student travelers, Dixon was right. Jewel Moser, a senior in the program, called the trip an “amazing opportunity.”

Devona Dixon, Ph.D.,left, associate professor in the fashion merchandizing program, with ICON360 scholarship winners Jewel Moser, right, and Mya Harris.

“For me, it was just a shift in how I saw the fashion industry,” said Moser. “Before, being in North Carolina and thinking New York and Los Angeles were so far away - they felt so distant. But being able to actually go there, learn from other people and see how what they’re doing relates to what we’re learning and making in class was just like a light bulb inside my head.”

The trip, coordinated with educational fashion tour company Banson NYC, placed emphasis on all aspects of fashion, such as textile and fabrics, visual merchandising, retail, apparel and accessories. Among the locations and seminars on the trip included Winston Retail Solutions, Bustle Digital Media Group, ASHYA, Zero Waste Daniel, a meeting with Harlem Fashion Row and Gap representatives, and a visit to Louis Vuitton’s flagship store and showroom, a visit offered directly to the fashion program as the itinerary was being planned.

Mya Harris, a sophomore in the fashion program, recalled a memorable visit with designer Kenneth King during the trip.

“He really talked in-depth about his design process, how he creates his garments from start-to-finish, the effort and skill – his skill level is out of this world,” said Harris. “And he just gave great advice about his story, how he came along. It was inspiring and really stuck with me. I’ve tried to use that mindset and that advice I gained from him for my own personal projects.”

Other allocations from the $100,000 award include new computers and equipment for the CAD Lab, funding for 20 new dress forms, funding to bring an executive in residence to campus and two $5,000 scholarships from ICON360, received by Moser and Harris.

“I was extremely excited to find that out!” said Moser, who said that she would use portions of the award for schooling and for the fashion show.

Likewise, Harris said the scholarship would go toward paying off student loans.

“That’s more money that my parents can keep in their pocket for the future,” she added.

For Dixon, the study tour was the realization of her long-dreamed-of project.

“I’ve been in the program for nine years and when I got here, that was one of the first things we had attempted to do, but was never able do because of the cost,” Dixon said. “I can’t thank Gap and Harlem's Fashion Row/ICON360 enough for those resources for us to travel, and for their continued student support.”

Follow Banson NYC at @bansonnyc for more information on educational tours.