Fashion majors at Centenary University are putting their design and sewing skills to good use during the COVID-19 crisis producing face masks for workers on the front lines fighting the pandemic.

Incorporating the ongoing crisis into the curriculum, Associate Professor of Fashion Mia Whang, Ph.D., and Professor of Fashion and Costume Design Meghan Reeves have assigned students studying Draping, Computer Applications in Fashion, Visual Retailing, and Advanced Apparel Construction the task of creating the masks.

Since students and faculty are observing the state-mandated quarantine, they are each distributing masks to family, friends, and acquaintances who need them most.

In creating the masks, Centenary fashion students and professors join a broader effort by the fashion industry, including several prominent fashion houses, to turn their talents toward mitigating the shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE) for healthcare workers.

“Part of Centenary’s mission is our dedication to preparing students to be productive and caring members of society,” Professor Reeves explained. “We want students to know that the skills they are learning can be used to give back to the community, even if we can’t leave our homes. This is also a way to help the individual calm their own anxiety and channel it into a more useful task.”

The University offers a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Fashion, with concentrations in design and merchandising, as well as a fashion minor.