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September 23, 2020
Dear Members of the Academic Planning Committee:
I was deeply disappointed to hear about the proposed closure of the Department of Textiles, Merchandising and Fashion Design at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln. I am the producer of Omaha Fashion Week [OFW] and have been partnering with the department in various ways over my 10 years in this position.
Today, I serve on the department’s Professional Advisory Council and produce its annual student fashion show as part of OFW’s Spring Season. That show has quickly become one of our favorites because of the visual interest and creativity demonstrated by your students.
I would strongly recommend against the proposed closure. There are thousands of high school students across the state of Nebraska studying fashion design right now. They could be your students. They should be your students. I know this because we have worked diligently over the past decade at OFW in building a talent pipeline for the fashion industry, with programming for kids starting as early as age six.
I see more and more students, each year, who attend our high school student night during the Spring Season of OFW. During this event, the work of nearly 150 high school students is shown on the runway before an audience of their peers, consisting of 1,000 kids. We are so dedicated to our mission of fostering an interest in fashion across Nebraska that we provide all show tickets free of charge to students who attend.
Where do all of these students come from? They come from programs like Nebraska 4-H, the Kent Bellows Mentoring Program at the Joslyn Art Museum, FCCLA and various high school fashion programs. Once they graduate from these programs, they are ready to look at college. They deserve a four-year in-state option to continue their interest in fashion.
So often, people think there is only one career path at the end of a fashion education…to be a fashion designer. While many kids start out thinking they want to be a designer, they often find a different direction during their studies. Perhaps they gravitate toward photography, journalism, entrepreneurship, fiber science, product design, videography, marketing, PR, color forecasting, law, agency work…the options are significant in a $4 billion industry that employs over 4 million people in the US. The industry is changing rapidly, and I believe there will continue to be well-paying jobs as our smart young people find ways to innovate through that change. Technology will continue to democratize access to the industry, making it possible for students to find job opportunities right here in Nebraska with companies around the globe.
My husband Nick and I see so much value in this type of education because it develops what we call transferable skills. Skills learned through fashion exploration include math, science, engineering, business, creativity, art, and communication. These skills are universally applicable, no matter the career path in which a student lands. We love this type of education because it engages students in subjects and develops skills that they may not normally take an interest in. This is especially true for girls, who far too often view subjects like math, science and engineering as not being for them. Introducing those topics through fashion allows them to develop confidence in those areas and discover strengths within themselves they may not otherwise have known.
Today’s take on fashion education grew out of the antiquated concept of Home Economics…traditionally an area of study relegated to women. In my experience within Nebraska’s fashion scene, I have witnessed how this history makes it easy for the powerful to write off fashion as being unimportant, superfluous, and not-to-be-taken-seriously. Thus, it is incredibly difficult to get support for it. Despite that, we have managed to turn Omaha Fashion Week into the nation’s 5th largest fashion event, and I think UNL can see the same success with the Department of Textiles, Merchandising and Fashion Design.
Fashion IS a subject to be taken seriously if you pay attention to the thousands of students who are demanding to study it within our state. There seems to be a breakdown in recruitment, as class sizes in the department have continued to decline, despite the growing interest in this area of study among high school students. By cutting the department, I believe you are leaving money on the table. As a member of the Professional Advisory Council, I would like to offer my help to improve the recruitment efforts for the department.
I strongly recommend preserving the department and investing in it, rather than allowing it to languish in its current state. Ask the students what they want in a fashion program and build it for them. They will come.
Sincerely,
Brook Hudson
Producer, Omaha Fashion Week