Students from Maui’s Lahainaluna and Baldwin High Schools traveled to the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa for a hands–on immersion into the future of fashion technology in February. Hosted by the Fashion Design and Merchandising (FDM) program, these visits show students how traditional skills such as sewing merge with cutting-edge innovations like Computer-Aided Design and electronic textiles (e-textiles).
The events are a part of the College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resilience’s outreach strategy to introduce high school students and their teachers to educational paths and career opportunities in the fashion industry.
Tradition meets high tech
Students from Baldwin High School’s Poʻo Academy participated in intensive workshops designed to show the cycle of modern garment creation. Associate Professor Ju–Young Kang taught students about using Optitex design software to create fashion concepts, the first step in a garment’s life.
Professor Minako McCarthy expanded on this cycle by providing a design curriculum overview and how fashion collections are developed. She took students on a tour of the design and sewing labs, where they talked with current junior and senior FDM students.
“The students and their teachers were very engaged from the first sketch to the actual outfit presented at the fashion exhibition and show,” McCarthy said.
In a session with Assistant Professor Olaitan Adeleke, students from Lahainaluna High School experimented with innovative e-textile technologies, creating their own stitched LED “smiley” circuits. These students rounded out their experience with a traditional sewing workshop.
“It’s one thing to simulate things on software, but it’s another thing to really build it hands-on,” said Adeleke. “Connecting that physical integration with software is a beautiful one.”
FDM faculty work with high schools across Oʻahu and Maui as part of a broader recruitment and outreach strategy started by Professor Andy Reilly. Adeleke expects more than 40 students from other schools to participate in the coming weeks.