In Partnership with Teen Vogue and the CFDA.

Fashion Education Week, brought to you by the Gromek Institute for Fashion Business, proudly presents Fashion In Between: The Future of Fashion Business.

This groundbreaking symposium connects academia and industry to spark bold conversations and pioneer innovative solutions within the circular economy. We’ll shine a spotlight on the often-ignored “off-white,” “grey,” and “in-between” spaces of fashion business, society, and creativity—while centering critical themes of intersectionality, sustainability, and social justice.

Join hands-on workshops led by top industry leaders, engage in intimate roundtable discussions that challenge the status quo, and participate in community-driven activities designed to inspire real change. Gain exclusive insights and build meaningful connections with professionals shaping the future of fashion.

Don't miss this rare opportunity to grow your network, advance your career, and explore the powerful intersection of business strategy, creative practice, and ethical innovation in fashion.

Join us from Monday October 14, 2024 to Monday November 4, 2024 for our fashion business summit during Fashion Education Week.

Register now to stay up to date with the schedule and guest participants!

2024 SPEAKERS

PROGRAM

Monday, October 14

12:00pm - 4:00 pm | Open Gallery

6:30 pm - 9:30 pm | Teen Vogue & Gromek Institute present

An Exclusive Screening of the Film “Invisible Beauty”

Panel/Q&A with Model, Advocate, Documentarian, Muse Bethann Hardison

& Film Director Frederic Tcheng

Moderated by Teen Vogue Executive Director Danielle Kwateng

Tuesday, October 15

1:00 pm - 7:00 pm | Open Gallery

1:00 pm  - 2:00 pm | Fabscrap Presentation, ending commercial textile “waste” & maximizing value of unused fabric | Rachel Ceruti, Director of Partnerships, Outreach & Education @ FABSCRAP INC

2:00 pm - 3:00 pm | Future of Fashion is "Phygital and Mindful" Workshop | Nova Lorraine, Award-Winning Fashion Designer & Futurist, Founder of House of Nova  

Hands-on workshops explores digital tools such as Midjourney to create immersive fashion experiences. Attendees should bring ipad or laptop. 

7:00 pm – 8:00 pm | CHNG & CRW Personal Branding & Journal Workshop | Christina Lee, Founder chng+crw & Educator

Wednesday, October 16

12:00 pm - 5:00 pm | Open Gallery

12:00 pm - 1:00 pm | The Fashion Entrepreneurship Guide Workshop | Keanan Duffty, Educator USC, Founder & Creative Director Keanan Duffty Studio

2:00 pm - 3:00 pm | Teen Vogue Panel: The Evolution of Fashion Editorial and Its Role In Today’s Fashion Industry | Moderator: Tchesmeni Leonard, Senior Fashion Editor for Allure, Glamour, and Teen Vogue | Panelists: Solange Franklin, Stylist, Editor & Brand Consultant | Roberto Johnson | Amira Rasool, CEO & Founder at The Folklore

3:00 pm - 4:00 pm | Size Inclusion in Fashion (SIF) Lab: Fat Fashion Illustration Workshop with Live Model | Professor Geoffry Gertz, Parsons School of Fashion

4:00 pm – 5:00 pm | Any Bag Weaving Workshop Kat Hoelck, Creative Director and Brand Strategist and Alex Dabagh, Founder & Creator of AnyBag

Thursday, October 17

10:00 am - 7:00 pm | Open Gallery

10:00 am - 2:00 pm | FABSCRAP Pop Up Fabric Sale

FABSCRAP is dedicated to ending commercial textile “waste” & maximizing value of unused fabric

12:00 pm - 2:00 pm | FABSCRAP Mending Circle hosted by MFA Fashion Design & Society 

FABSCRAP is dedicated to ending commercial textile “waste” & maximizing value of unused fabric

2:00 pm – 3:00 pm | Design with Intent at Ralph Lauren Conversation |

A discussion about Ralph Lauren’s unique approach to mutually-beneficial cultural collaborations and how the Company is evolving from inspiration to collaboration with the communities that have historically inspired its designs |

Sasha Kelly, Head of Design with Intent at Ralph Lauren | Dara Douglas, Product and Brand Lead Design with Intent at Ralph Lauren | Sloane Gustafson, Manager of Operations Design with Intent at Ralph Lauren | Jordan Naylor, Strategy and Partnerships Lead Design with Intent at Ralph Lauren

4:00 pm – 5:00 pm | Tory Burch Open Conversation: Sustainability and ESG Strategy | Jennifer Gootman, SVP,  Global Head of Sustainability & ESG Strategy at Tory Burch

5:00 pm – 6:00 pm * | Tory Burch Open Conversation: Legal Aspects of Business | Amanda Sachs, General Counsel, Legal at Tory Burch 

*Date/Time subject to change and to be confirmed

Friday, October 18

12:00 pm - 5:00 pm | Open Gallery

12:00 pm – 1:00 pm | Teen Vogue Panel: How Activism Is Playing a Larger Role in Fashion | Moderator: Alyssa Hardy | Panelists: Summer Dean, Artist, Digital Storyteller & Environmental Advocate, Whitney McGuire, Co-Founder of Sustainable BK & Educator | Sara Ziff, Founder & Executive Director of the Model Alliance

1:30 pm – 3:00 pm | Afrofuturism & The Circular Economy Presentation | Ibada Wadud, Educator

"Premonitions from Gees Bend: What Afrofuturism can teach us about fashion's waste problem, and solutions offered by Black designer."

3:00 pm – 4:00 pm | Closely Crafted Handworker Economy: World of Pleating and Local Luxury Craftsmanship in America Panel | Moderated by Gigi Burris designer and founder of  Closely Crafted | Panelist: Andrew Kolczynski, Research Based Artist & George Kalajian, Owner of Tom's Sons International Pleating (a 5-generation family business in the textile industry)

Closely crafted is a 5013C nonprofit organization based in New York City. Their mission is to preserve artisan craft for the next generation and inspire a new set of creators.

Closely Crafted presents: “Four Empty Walls” by Andrew Kolczynski.

“Four Empty Walls” is a mini-documentary about a 5-generation family business in the textile industry. George Kalajian, the son who runs their factory today, teaches us about pleating, his rich family history, and the importance of heritage through process and craft.

Gigi Burris, designer and founder of closely crafted will moderate a panel discussion with George and Andrew following the mini documentary screening. Discover the world of pleating and local luxury craftsmanship.

Andrew Kolczynski is a research-based artist currently exploring the intersections of process, empathy, ego, and failure.

4:00 pm - 5:00 pm | Parsons FAF Student Alliance Workshop: Envisioning Another Fashion Future | Mini Mrinalini, Angel Luo, Giordana Cue & Sofie Johansson, Co-founders, FAF Alliance, MS SDM, Parsons School of Design

We extend an invitation to envision and dream of a reimagined future for the fashion industry—one grounded in equity and sustainability. This event is designed for those who seek to identify their role in shaping this transformation and engage with others in meaningful dialogue about building a more just and environmentally conscious industry. While these ambitions may initially appear daunting, our aim is for attendees to depart with a renewed sense of agency as advocates for sustainability within their respective domains. In this collaborative setting, we will explore both the challenges and opportunities presented by legislative measures such as the Fashion Act, fostering a collective exchange of innovative insights and strategies.

Thursday, October 24

 12:00 pm - 5:00 pm | Open Gallery

1:00 pm to 2:00 pm | Exploring the Future of Digital Fashion with Style3D | Led by Parsons Faculty Isabella Dawn Notaro, Dan Snyder & Matt Bakhoum of Style3D |This hands-on workshop introduces participants to Style3D, a groundbreaking software platform for creating virtual garments and 3D fashion designs. The session will explore how digital design technologies are transforming the fashion business by enhancing sustainability, speeding up workflows, and fostering creativity. We’ll highlight Style3D’s simulation tools, AI-driven digital avatars, and its integration into modern fashion ecosystems.

Please bring a laptop to participate.

6:30 pm - 8:30 pm | America Real

talk | A conversation with Willy Chavarría and the ACLU | Join us for an engaging conversation featuring Sue Bird, Aj Hikes, Phillip Lim, & Megan Rapinoe.

Limited seating available.

Friday, October 25

12:00 pm - 5:00 pm | Open Gallery

3:00 pm to 4:00 pm | Screen Printing Workshop Led by Luciana Scrutchen - Layered Impressions: Exploring Textile Materiality through Gel Plate Techniques. This hands-on workshop, participants will explore tactile and visual possibilities of textile materiality through gel plate techniques for textile printing, mark-making, and printmaking. Participants will learn to layer textures, patterns, and colors to create multi-dimensional textile designs.

Monday, October 28

9:00 am - 11:40 am | Tracing Beauty - Artist Dhriti Chakravarty and Emily Stafford (BFA, class of 2028) will work on two separate artwork pieces that reimagine what beauty symbolizes today and how we can find new visual codes to more aptly capture its essence. Tracing Beauty x Fashion in Between will strive to reimagine some of the current beauty tropes through new imagery, and will aim at freeing some of the visual vocabulary around the human body from the historic relics that have permeated the beauty ideal thus far. 

12:00 pm - 3:00 pm | Open Gallery

Tuesday, October 29

12:00 pm - 5:00 pm | Open Gallery

1:00 pm - 2 pm | Creative Entrepreneurship & Cultivating Grit | Led by Kat Hoelck, Creative Director, Faculty & Founding Partner & Director of Strategic Partnerships at ANYBAG.

Wednesday, October 30

12:00pm - 4:00 pm | Open Gallery

*Date/Time subject to change and to be confirmed

Thursday, October 31

12:00pm - 4:00 pm | Open Gallery

7:00 – 8:00 pm | CFDA Open Conversation: “Fashion Futures: A Look Inside the CFDA Scholarship Fund” | A “behind the application” view into Kevin Bass of the CFDA’s work, along with personal insights and stories from CFDA scholars 

Kevin Bass Senior Associate, Programs & Fashion Calendar at the CFDA | CFDA Scholars: Jacques Agbobly Founder & Creative Director of Agbobly | Kishan S. Tehara, the 2023 Geoffrey Beene Design Masters Scholar | Effe (Qi He) Waldorf, the 2024 recipient of the CFDA Design Scholar Awards (Sustainability) | Mel Corchado Liz Claiborne Design for Impactful Futures Scholar Award (2022) | Ren Haixi Founder and Creative Director of REN HAIXI Geoffrey Beene Design Masters Scholar Award (2022)

Friday, November 1

12:00pm - 4:00 pm | Open Gallery

12:30 pm - 1:30 pm | Planning Fashion Shows & Events with Second Row | Led by recent Parsons Graduates Aanya Singh, Alexander Pidzamecky and Benedetta Pizzi Second Row Founder |Step by step on how to plan your own fashion event.

1:30 – 2:30 pm * | Balmain Beauty Open Conversation: Creative Business & The World of Beauty | Hans Dorsinville, Senior Vice President, Global Creative at Balmain Beauty

*Date/Time subject to change and to be confirmed

2:30 pm - 3:30 pm | Designer? Artisan? The power in labels and the role of education in perpetuating privilege | For more than 15 years, the Parsons DEED Research Lab has focused on researching the artisan sector and modeling more sustainable and equitable ways for artisans and designers to collaborate. Join Lab Director Cynthia Lawson Jaramillo for this moderated conversation with Judy Frater, founder of the first program of design education for artisans in the arid desert region of Kutch, India; and two alumni from Somaiya Kala Vidya’s design program—Pachan Premji Siju, renowned weaver and entrepreneur, and Adil Mustak Khatri, award-winning bandhani artist and entrepreneur.

5 pm - 6 pm | Leaders of The New School | Join us for a conversation with five emerging designers Yetunde Sapp Multimedia Artist, Designer, Curator, Ahmrii Johnson Fashion Artist, Justin P. Etienne Fashion Designer, Storyteller, Yamil Arbaje Co-Founder, LEBLANCSTUDIOS Led by Mel Corchado Designer, and Founder of ITA. A Conversation on how they explore the imperfect yet empowering transition from fashion education to professional practice.

Saturday, November 2

1:00 pm - 3:00 pm | Fashion Playspace Workshop | Kids Welcome to Attend | Led by Lucia Cuba, Parsons | The New School Assistant Professor of Fashion Design And Social Justice

Donna Karan, Co-Director, Mfa Fashion Design & Society

School Of Fashion 

A creative space for everyone to openly explore and play with clothing, textiles and fashion. Here, participants can try out their own ideas, make up their own rules, question what fashion means, and find new ways to engage with fashion.

This session is suggested for participants 7 years and older.

RSVP needed 

Lucia Cuba is a Peruvian designer and scholar whose work reimagines wearable forms as tools for social and political expression, at the intersection of design and social justice. She serves as Assistant Professor of Fashion Design and Social Justice and the Donna Karan Co-Director of the MFA Fashion Design and Society program at Parsons. Lucia approaches fashion education as a transformative practice, using it as a vehicle for critical dialogue and social change.

* Dates & Times are subject to change. Check the schedule for updates 

*Speakers & Facilitators (More speakers and facilitators to be announced).