L life
Jane Winthrop Feature Writer
As University students leave Grounds for internships, vacations and summer jobs, students who are part of the Rare Book School’s Fellowship Program will head into 30-hour weeks of class time to prepare for an academic project they will complete in the upcoming school year. The Fellowship Program began in 2011 with a grant from the Jefferson Trust, now extending seven fellowship offers to students who will partake in summer courses located at the University, in New Haven, Connecticut and in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. “It’s exciting that we have been able to generate the interest and increase the number of U.Va. students who are taking part in our courses,” Programs Director Amanda Nelson said.
Monday, April 28, 2014
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Rare Book School offers summer fellowship Students take book history classes, consult historical materials, prepare for intensive independent study The program aims to integrate an understanding of book history and the physical object of the book with students’ individual research. The program allows students to apply course material to their respective projects, which they complete during the following school year. “Understanding how a book was made can really inform your appreciation of the work,” said current fellow Stephanie Kingsley, a master’s candidate in the English department. Participants in the program take classes five days a week from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Class topics range from “XML in Action: Creating Text Encoding Initiative Text” to “The History of the Book in America c. 1700-1830.” Lectures and movie nights are held in the evenings to bring the fellows together. “The classes are pretty intense,” Rare Book School spokesperson Jeremy Dibble said. “It’s been compared to boot camp more than once.” Though the courses often
appeal primarily to English and history students, the Rare Book School seeks applicants from a variety of disciplines. “We are very excited when we get students from a range of departments,” Nelson said. “We don’t have a lot of numbers from these other departments, but we certainly have interests from [them] and it’s great when we can make a connection to a department that we don’t have a lot of dialogue with necessarily.” Program instructors make great efforts to utilize the collections and resources of the Rare Book School in their courses. “The idea is that we want to put you in as much close contact with the stuff as we can,” Dibble said. “That’s how you learn.” History doctoral candidate David Smith, one of the fellows, said he appreciates how the community within the program is connected. “Often times, the academic world can feel hierarchical and you’re constantly deferential to somebody," Smith said. "But the
Rare Books School really turned it from a hierarchical relationship to a peer-to-peer relationship.” The Rare Book School and the Fellowship Program support the long connection the University has with book history and bibliography, Assistant Curator Tess Goodman said.
“I think one other point that’s important to emphasize is … an egalitarian community that the RBS creates,” Goodman said. “People who love books generally like to share that love and they like to connect and it’s a wonderful, strong community that’s very interested in [sharing] knowledge.”
Marshall Bronfin | The Cavalier Daily
Students in the Rare Book School Fellowship program will take summer classes on the history of books in preparation for an academic study to be completed the following school year.
Futures in Fashion Association named best new CIO Fashion merchandising industry draws interest from ambitious undergrads, offers marketing, design opportunities Margaret Mason Feature Writer
Student Council recognized Futures in Fashion Association earlier this month as the Best New CIO for the academic year. Founded in spring of 2013 by then fourth-year Commerce student Kristen Ulmer, the organization’s website claims the group “works to create an open dialogue between U.Va. students interested in fashion and industry professionals to raise awareness within the student body about working in the fashion industry.” Now led by president and third-year Commerce student Mai-Vi Nguyen, FIFA has taken Grounds by storm. “Our bigger purpose is to foster a fashion community at the University,” Nguyen said. “Not only those who are creative or artsy, but anyone who is interested in fashion and working in the industry.” Between partnering with other organizations, participating in the Tomtober Fest and swinging guest speakers like the former CEO and financial advisor of Five and Pacific Bill McComb, the organization has climbed the ranks in name recognition. FIFA was re-
cently featured as 21st on Society of the Dawn’s list of student organizations dedicated to diversity. “It was way more successful that we could’ve ever imagined and we were all super happy,” aid membership chair Elyse Eilerman, a second-year Commerce student. “There’s a desire in the U.Va. community for something like this. I think a lot of people are interested in working on the business side of fashion, so I think there was a niche where we fit in perfectly.” Beyond a presence on grounds, FIFA hopes to build connections among members and alumni currently in the fashion industry. With these connections, internships and jobs in the competitive fashion industry can be easier to obtain. “What we really want to give our members is the ability to reach out and make connections with people already working in the industry, because it can be really hard to break into that industry even if you’re on the business side,” Eilerman said. “That’s what we’re here for, to be a stepping stone to help students and also to provide a community.” Though the University does
not offer a fashion program, many members of the Futures in Fashion Association are adamant in their desire to work in the industry. “[We want members to] see coming from U.Va. — which is a school that is definitely more liberal arts, business or engineering — that there is an opportunity for them,” said club secretary and Emily Sefcik, a second-year College student. “It is a very competitive industry but we just want to show that it is possible [to break into].” FIFA organizes and establishes contacts in the fashion world, providing possibility and promise for futures in the fashion industry. “The main reason why I wanted to get involved in this and lead this is because others helped me realize my dream, which sounds cheesy but at the beginning of last semester I was still looking for finance internships,” Nguyen said. “I want to help other students realize that, too, and achieve their dreams.” Beyond professional contacts, the organization also fosters a community based on the common interest of fashion. “We want to be a social organization to connect students who are interested in fashion to
have an outlet to talk about the latest fashion shows and also the professional side where we help students jumpstart their careers in the industry, connect them
with industry professionals and help them through the application and interview process,” Nguyen said. “We like to say we’re both social and professional.”
Courtesy FIFA
Futures in Fashion Association was recognized by Student Council as the University’s best new CIO earlier this month.