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Workshop at Local High School Heralds New Partnership Between United Colors of Fashion and Community
By Ada Onuegbe
NEW YORK, NY – May 27, 2015 – United Colors of Fashion (UCOF) Vice President of Fashion Education, Michael Palladino, lead high school students through the fashion workshop, “The Power of Brand”. The course was presented as part of UCOF’s Fashion Education Program and was held at Lower East Side Preparatory High School in lower Manhattan.
Palladino’s workshop connected with students in an era of hyper self-expression. He described the societal and personal implications of branding choices and related them to everyday behaviors. “If we are each a brand, we market ourselves through our choices and attract a certain person while repelling another,” Palladino said. “We discussed how the people we meet have expectations of us through our choices and will have a reaction to us based on how they interpret our choices.” Students were asked to reflect on their personal brand and created branding mood boards, which were presented during the class.
“This was an amazing class. I learned that fashion is not just clothes, but a reflection of who you are to other people,” said Lower East Side Preparatory student Xiangyun Zhang, who attended the class. Guidance Intern Teresa Hsu was also in an attendance and lauded the hands-on approach of the course. “The presentation and the activity was a great way to let students gain a better understanding of how logos, images, and styles help project an overall image to us as we encounter them each day,” she said. “In addition, students could think about what image of themselves they want to project to others.”
The workshop marked the beginning of partnerships between UCOF and schools in New York City. Select middle schools and high schools in the metropolitan area have agreed to host the free Fashion Education Program during the upcoming Fall season. Palladino expressed confidence in these new relationships within the local community, calling the first course at Lower East Side Preparatory, “a success”.
The UCOF Fashion Education Program gives students a glimpse into the many career opportunities in fashion while mobilizing traditional academic skills. A range of courses is offered in subjects such as fashion history, visual merchandising, fashion marketing, event planning, fashion magazines, styling and more.
The program is open to all students in the metropolitan area and hosted on Saturdays at partner schools in New York City. If you are interested in learning how your school can become a UCOF partner, please contact VP of Fashion Education Michael Palladino via email at michael@unitedcolorsoffashion.org. Information about the Fashion Education Program can be found here.
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