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Summer Scholar Series

 
 

The 2020 FSF Summer Scholar Series — ten weeks of robust virtual programming — consisted of the below components:

  • Workforce Preparedness Courses: These classes focused on specific topics and hard skills as a supplement to what Scholars were learning in school, in order to better prepare them for a successful career in the fashion industry. These sessions equipped Scholars and Alumni for their future internships or full-time job opportunities.

  • Master Classes: These sessions, featured throughout the ten week program, allowed Scholars and Alumni to hear from industry experts on relevant topics and current challenges of the industry.

 
 

Virgil Abloh: Fashion in a Post-Modern World

In July 2020 Virgil Abloh announced he has committed $1 million to a partnership with the FSF to benefit scholarships and programmatic support for Black students through the Virgil Abloh™️ “Post-Modern” Scholarship Fund. This session is roundtable conversation with Virgil and FSF Scholars, moderated by Robin Givhan, The Washington Post’s Pulitzer Prize winning fashion critic, as he looks back at his early years in the industry and shares his perspective on the work he’s doing today to foster equity and inclusion within the fashion industry.

 

TOMMY HILFIGER – The Importance of Purpose-Driven Brands, and his Philosophy on Fashion’s Next Steps

The first Master Class in the Fashion Scholarship Fund's Summer Scholar Series, featuring Tommy Hilfiger. Hear about the importance of purpose-driven brands during the pandemic, and Tommy's philosophy on moving forward in the months to come.

 

Skills for 3D Design and Digital Product Creation in Fashion

View this Workforce Preparedness Course in FSF's Summer Scholar Series to learn how to enhance your skills in the fundamentals of 3D Design and Digital Product Creation in Fashion. Learn how fashion brands are utilizing 3D technology to rapidly prototype while reducing waste and how the pandemic has accelerated the need to digitize the supply chain.

 

Ask Brandon: A Master Class with Brandon Maxwell

The final Master Class of the Summer Scholar Series, hosted by longtime FSF supporter and industry superstar, Brandon Maxwell! In lieu of a traditional interview, FSF flipped the tables and put our scholars and alumni in the Host seat. Fifteen members of our FSF community were chosen to ask Brandon questions about the state of the industry – with topics ranging from building a brand to the current fashion climate in the time of COVID.

 

Data and Artificial Intelligence Are Restyling the Fashion Industry

The eighth Workforce Preparedness Course in the FSF Summer Scholar Series, "Data and Artificial Intelligence Are Restyling the Fashion Industry." Hear from Dhivya Rajprasad, Lead Data Scientist at Levi Strauss & Co., about the fast-growing data science and artificial intelligence team. Learn how Levi’s is working to be a more data-driven organization and using artificial intelligence to accelerate opportunities throughout the company. In the second half of the session, connect with Associate Data Scientists and former interns Carson Zhao and Sam Manzi and hear, first-hand, about their experiences of studying, interning, and starting their careers in this field.

 

The Rise of Accountability in Fashion & Beauty: Challenging the Industry To Change

A roundtable conversation in FSF's Summer Scholar Series, addressing representation and the need for accountability in the fashion and beauty industries, among: digital content creator and social media expert Chrissy Rutherford, Powerhouse PR Executive Sandrine Charles, Teen Vogue Editor-In-Chief Lindsay Peoples Wagner (Co-Founders of the Black in Fashion Council) and Danielle Prescod, Style Director at BET.com, on creating systemic change.

 

Retail Math: The Intersection Between Fashionable and Profitable

In this Workforce Preparedness Course in FSF's Summer Scholar Series, Professors Deidra Arrington and Marla Greene will cover the fundamental factors to consider when pricing product. We will also review the most useful retail math formulas to help create effective pricing strategies.

 

CREATING AN AUTHENTIC BRAND VOICE FROM SCRATCH -THE BRAND IDENTITY AND YOU

The fifth Master Class in the 2020 FSF Summer Scholar Series - CREATING AN AUTHENTIC BRAND VOICE FROM SCRATCH -THE BRAND IDENTITY AND YOU. As a young mother, Ariane Goldman left her thriving corporate career to follow her heart and found that when she put her priorities first, consumers responded. Moderator Lauren Smith Brody helps us peel back the curtain on the intricacies of utilizing personality and values to curate a unique voice for your company.

 

Coffee with the Bosses

Grab a cup of coffee and settle in for one of this summer’s most informal - and informative - sessions. Hear from a trio of industry leaders: Keith Baptista Founding Partner and Managing Director of PRODJECT), Georgie Greville (Co-Founder and Creative Director for Milk Makeup) and Marc Mastronardi (Chief Stores Officer at Macy's). During this discussion, they will open up their playbooks and candidly cover topics ranging from their first post-grad assignments to how they overcame professional challenges to become some of the most influential leaders in retail, beauty and fashion.

Job Search in a Digital World: Mastering Your Online Profile

The first session in the FSF Summer Scholar Series' workforce preparedness course, Job Search in a Digital World, focused on how best to utilize the LinkedIn platform to define and present your online profile most effectively. View this session to learn best practices on how to maximize this professional network to continue furthering your career during these challenging times.

 

FSF Accelerator Grant “Shark Tank” Pitch Event

The FSF Accelerator Grant "Shark Tank" Pitch Event was presented on Thursday, June 18th, 2020 -- featuring four FSF Alumni presenting their nascent businesses to a panel of esteemed judges who provided industry insights and feedback. The judges for FSF's "Shark Tank" Pitch Event were:

- Martin Cooper, Former Chief Creative Officer, Belstaff and VP Design, Burberry and Creative Director, Lands' End
- Julia Haart, Group Chief Executive Officer, Elite World
- Coco Rocha, Model & Entrepreneur
- April Uchitel, CEO, Violet Grey

 

“The art of buying — it’s all about the negotiation”

The third Workforce Preparedness Course in FSF's Summer Scholar Series -- a deep dive into the art and science of buying. View this session to learn key tactics to negotiate successfully and hear how these negotiation skills can be utilized in all aspects of your professional life.

 

THE POWER OF PURPOSE IN FASHION - a deep dive into the world of FEED

The fourth Master Class in the FSF Summer Scholar Series is a deep dive into the world of FEED. Hear how Lauren Bush Lauren launched and built a successful impact-driven lifestyle brand with an enduring principle at the heart — that peoples' choices of what to buy and wear have the power to change the world.

 

For A World That Works - How good design, innovation, and a holistic look at sustainability are revolutionizing a 130-year-old heritage denim brand in the midst of an environmental crisis.

The third Master Class in the FSF Summer Scholar Series: For A World That Works - How good design, innovation, and a holistic look at sustainability are revolutionizing a 130-year-old heritage denim brand in the midst of an environmental crisis. Hear how Lee Jeans is partnering with high tech agricultural greenhouse AppHarvest, and taking on the new workforce in America. View this spirited dialogue, rooted in sustainability, among Jonathan Webb (Founder & CEO of AppHarvest), Roian Atwood (Senior Director of Global Sustainable Business at Kontoor Brands, Inc), and Brigid Stevens (Senior Brand Director).

 

"This is not the end of fashion!" - Vanessa Friedman, Fashion Director & Chief Fashion Critic, The New York Times

The second Master Class session in the FSF’s Summer Scholar Series: “This is not the end of fashion!”-- hear from Vanessa Friedman, the Fashion Director and Chief Fashion Critic for The New York Times, on what will we look like post-crisis.

 

From design student to design industry - the transition. A course in shifting your perspective.

The sixth Workforce Preparedness Course in the FSF Summer Scholar Series, “From design student to design industry - the transition. A course in shifting your perspective.” During this session, you'll from Rocky Jones, Art Manager at Kohl’s, and Alicia Hardesty, Designer at Kohl’s, on how your perspective may have to change as you transition from the individual (in school, focused on fostering your individual creativity) to the collective (industry – focused on customers, teamwork and company initiatives).

 

The Marriage of Fashion & Technology - What The Future of Fashion Looks Like In A Digital World

A master Class in FSF's Summer Series that explored with Alicia Tillman (Global Chief Marketing Officer of SAP) how fashion today relies on technology and software to remain innovative in an ever-changing digital world, moderated by Lauren Goodman.