Wayne State College hosts its annual Career Clothing Drive from Sept. 16 until Oct. 7, where the community can donate gently used career clothing and shoes for college students.
The Career Clothing drive began in 2019 to make career clothing readily available to WSC students without cost. Laura Dendinger is the FBLA faculty sponsor on campus. She said that many donors have stepped forward with clothing to make their dreams come true.
“We want to reduce the experiments to getting a job,” Dendinger said. “The cost of career clothing is one impediment that might leave some students without the means to feel confident and prepared for the Career Fair and future job interviews.”
On Oct. 9, WSC will host a Career Fair for students to meet with potential future employers and learn more about their career from local businesses.
The idea for this project was originally a career fashion show to launch a drive to gather clothing. Dendinger said they wanted to show students that there were shopping options in Wayne at retail price and thrift store affordability.
“Covid hit during the next semester, so we had a virtual fashion show to continue collecting clothing,” Dendinger said.
When school resumed the next year, the group hosted its first pop-up Career Clothing Closet at the WSC food pantry, which was a success.
“The next year we broadened our approach by moving the effort to a classroom in Gardner Hall, with access to places students could try things on,” Dendinger said.
The group has found a home in Benthack, where they display the donated clothing and accessories year-round. They will be open as a store before the Career Fair.
Heidi Taylor was the president last year and was passionate about this project.
“I was determined to help as many students as possible with this project,” Taylor said. “It is a very impactful program because not all students have business clothes and for job interviews the first impression can set the tone for the whole interview or event.”
Taylor said getting to see the smiles on students’ faces made all the hard work she put in worth it. Taylor wants everyone to feel welcome to come when the group hosts its pop-up events later in the semester.
“There is nothing to be nervous about,” Taylor said. “It is super casual and fun. We have music playing in the background, snacks, and FBLA members there to help them pick some stuff out if they want and it is all completely free.”
Donation boxes are placed in the following locations around Wayne; Micah’s Closet, State Nebraska Bank, WSC Financial Services in Hahn, Hermann Chiropractic and the School of Business and Technology in Gardner Hall.
