Student fashion designs are set to hit the runway in ‘Opulence’ show

Quincy Taylor Staff Reporter

From popping balloons to basket tosses to inflatable obstacle courses, Student Appreciation Day had something for most types of students. CWU hosted Student Appreciation Day Thursday at Barto Lawn to show gratitude and love for the hard work that the students put in this school year. The staged theme was “Carnival,” and it sure felt like one with all the games and food that was presented.

With the academic year coming to a close, students are working to earn good grades and make sure they pass their classes. Amber Hoefer, Director of CWU Student Leadership Involvement and Community Engagement (SLICE), stated that Student Appreciation Day was to “show love for the students” on campus.

“I think that we get stuck in our daily routines and our students are working and going to class trying to graduate and finish their assignments,” Hoefer said.

Fest,” and it will be featuring Armani White.

According to Hoefer, this process of planning takes quite some time and they’ve been scheduling since the fall and working with their vendors since January. Hoefer stated what her role was in this planning process as well as how the event was set up.

“[It] takes a long time,” Hoefer said. “I was the key coordinator for the event…my role is really trying to make sure all the pieces of the puzzle fit together so that this is a cohesive event.”

As the event was filled with tons of games and prizes and food, students had opportunities to enjoy themselves.

Cody Young, a senior majoring in physical education and school health, shared what he liked about the event.

“It was pretty good…got some good food and some free drinks and play[ed] some games,” Young said. “My favorite game from the event was the putt-putt, it was pretty fun honestly.”

MJ Rivera Scene Editor

Student designers in the apparel, textile and merchandising (ATM) program will be showcasing their looks in this year’s fashion show titled “Opulence” on June 3 in the Milo Smith Tower Theater in McConnell Hall.

Andrea Eklund, professor in the ATM major and director of the fashion show, said, “There [are] the students who, starting at the beginning of the quarter, look for models, get their measurements [and], create all the designs. They’re constructing everything.”

There are two classes in charge of putting on the fashion show: ATM 360, fashion show production, and ATM 482, fashion show designers, according to Eklund.

CWU has had an apparel design program since 1915, and this year is their 27th fashion show.

The title of each year’s fashion show is created by the students on the first day of Eklund’s class, ATM 482. The students create posters for the fashion show and the class votes for the one they all want to represent the show, according to Eklund.

“They are kind of thinking about what [is] interesting and what goes with what’s happening in society, what’s trending…opulence was the one that was chosen with the most votes,” Eklund said.

Opulence means wealth or abundance, according to Merriam Wwebster.

“[It’s] something extra,” Eklund said. “Something that you don’t have every day, something out of the ordinary, something that is creative and visually interesting.”

Every year, the fashion show is different than the last because there are always new designers. This year, there are 12 designers presenting their work in the show, 11 of which are graduating this year, according to Eklund.

“We have ‘opulence’ as the fashion show theme, but then we have

12 separate mini collections within the show,” Eklund said. “So, it’s like 12 mini shows overall, because they all have different themes, a different feel [and], a different target market. That’s the cool thing about it.”

According to Ecklund, other universities require students to be senior standing to be in the show. Unlike other universities, students of any class standing can participate in the fashion show as long as they have completed the prerequisites. Each student designer has created 3-5 designs for the show, according to Eklund.

“I’m really working on it all year long, and then the students come into play when spring quarter starts,” Eklund said.

Eklund said she looks forward to seeing her students celebrate their hard work in the fashion show.

“Them having that moment of seeing all their stuff on the runway…is really amazing,” Eklund said. “Watching them have that fruition come to light on the runway, they’ve worked so hard. It’s one of the hardest things they’ll ever do. Having it all come together and then getting that recognition from the audience…makes all the work [worth it].”

The fashion show will be an immersive experience for audience members as they learn about each set of designs, according to Eklund.

“It’s not just a fashion show, you learn about the students,” Eklund said. “[There’s]…a mini student-designer interview before their collection starts so you really learn about the inspiration and their process and kind of what they got out of it.”

Eklund said the CWU theater department has worked alongside the student designers and producers to put on the annual fashion show for the last 15 years as well.

“We work with the theater department on the lighting and creating really an immersive experience that is really dynamic,” Eklund said. “It’s really showcasing so many different departments and students’ work and their knowledge that they’ve learned here on campus in the event, which I think is pretty amazing.”

Sophomore ATM major Tatum Mohagen is the student design coordinator in the production class for this year’s fashion show. Mohagen’s job is to be the bridge between the student designers and producers of the show, apart from the staging committee and promotion team in the production class.

“I hope that people that come can see how amazing and cool our program is and enjoy the show…I’m really excited,” Mohagen said.

Mohagen said she was inspired to be a part of this year’s show after she had gone to see the 2022 fashion show with her mom.

“This year is my first year helping behind the scenes and putting it on, so it’s cool to have gone to it last year and to have seen it and know what it’s about, and then this year see the behind the scenes of how it gets put together,” Mohagen said.

Mohagen said she feels that the ATM program gives students valuable hands-on experience.

“Whatever you’re learning in class, there’s always a project or a way that you get to apply it in a very realistic way,” Mohagen said. “Our program really does a great job setting you up to succeed in that way.”

The student designs were photographed and judged on May 25, according to Mohagen.

“I actually had the role of choosing four judges, and so I reached out to a whole bunch of people,” Mohagen said.

The four judges Mohagen recruited were Marsha, the CEO of fashion brand Stupid Stitch, CWU ATM alum Sean Helligso, owner of Claim Clothing in downtown Ellensburg Megan West and retired CWU theater arts professor Scott Robinson.

There will be an award ceremony at the end of the fashion show on June 3.

“I think the goal for me is that students have kind of a moment to remember that they’re part of something bigger and they can go hang out with their friends and enjoy an evening off.”

According to Hoefer, celebrating for the students helps show how the students are making the university move forward with their hard work, and she states that it’s an opportunity to “share our appreciation.”

“I think that this is really an opportunity for us to share gratitude and appreciation for not only them picking CWU, but for them continuing to move our university forward and making sure that each Wildcat feels like they belong,” Hoefer said.

For this event, the theme was “Carnival” and according to Hoefer, they have done some carnival engagement to give off a different vibe than what they have done in the past.

“We really went with the carnival theme so that we could have a combination of game prizes and really just try to let the students kind of kick back before finals,” Hoefer said.

According to Hoefer, when asked about how this year’s event would be different from last year’s event, the main distinction was renting carnival games and not having different clubs and organizations do labor to host games and activities.

“One of the things that is different is that we have a variety of games that are going to be hosted by different departments on campus…so instead this year, we’re renting equipment and different games, bringing them in and then we have different departments hosting each game so that they can share their appreciation,” Hoefer said.

Hoefer also mentioned that next week, there will be a student appreciation concert called, “Wild

Devonte Holden, a junior majoring in psychology, shared his thoughts on how he had a great time at the event . According to Holden, he called the event “inspiring.”

“I thought it was cool to be around a whole bunch of people and mingle,” Holden said. “I thought it was very interesting that they had a lot of events and it kind of felt like a Puyallup fair vibe, where you are just around people having fun getting food. II wouldn’t say I have a favorite game to play at this event, I just enjoyed it all.”

According to Jacob Gilsdorf, a junior majoring in marketing, his favorite part of the event was the food and how the catering was awesome.

“The burgers are pretty good and the ribs. I like the new Coca-Cola flavor as well,” Gilsdorf said.

According to Hoefer, after the event ended, she said it was “successful” and she had a good time seeing students have a good time and that was what she intended to aim for.

“I’ve enjoyed seeing the students that may or may not have realized this event was happening light up and then hang out and sit on the grass, take their food and play games,” Hoefer said.

According to Hoefer, without campus wide support, none of this would happen and she was really grateful for support in this event.

“We can’t do large events like this without campus wide support,” Hoefer said. “I think it’s cool because some of the departments that don’t always engage with students…if you’re doing more of like administrative things, I think it gives them a different avenue to engage with students and they’re having a lot of fun. I’ve been really grateful for the campus wide participation and I hope we can continue to grow.”