Retail Merchandising and Apparel Design Students Attend NRF Student Program

January 31, 2019

Accompanied by retail merchandising instructors Peggy Lord and Jaye Thompson, students from retail merchandising, apparel design, the College of Liberal Arts, and Carlson School of Management attended the 2019 NRF Foundation Student Program in New York City January 9 through 13.

The NRF Student Program is a unique opportunity for students to meet and connect with retail industry leaders, hear from CEOs and senior executives, network with global recruiters, and familiarize themselves with the latest innovations in retail technology. “This is a great opportunity for students to hear first hand from leaders in the retail industry, gain valuable experience networking at the Career Fair, build relationships with each other and explore a great city like New York,” said Lord. Highlights of the trip included the opportunity to meet Steve Madden and visit his showroom and ice skate at Rockefeller Plaza.

During the trip student Rachel Duerksen (Retail Merchandising), had the opportunity to compete in the Next Generation Scholarship contest and was named a semi-finalist while Maxine Britt (Apparel Design) competed in the YMA Fashion Scholarship Fund and was named a semi-finalist.

In total, over 1,000 students attended the event from 85 schools across the nation.

The retail merchandising program is proud to share that, as part of its 2020 Retail Connect event, it was able to provide individual scholarships to six current retail students: Courtney Clark, Caroline Geiger, Pei Jet Teh, Olivia Rein, Annie Skogen, and Kersten Wetterstrom.

Home to some of the largest and most important clothing designers and retailers in the world, New York City looms large in the imagination of any design student. This year, 17 retail merchandising and apparel design students had the chance to spend their spring break in the city that never sleeps and get a behind the scenes look at some of the biggest retailers in the world.

The YMA Fashion Scholarship Fund is an educational non-profit that focuses on creating career opportunities for apparel design students worldwide.