This summer, DENT Education’s ‘Bet on Baltimore’ launched a new program for city students interested in learning about the business of fashion. Several current and a former BDS student participated in the rigorous internship co- led by BDS Vista – Arnetra Burnett and Shadia Musa, who served as fashion coaches.

BET ON BALTIMORE is [DENT’s] flagship program. It is an intensive, paid, 5-week summer internship that teaches design thinking, making, and entrepreneurship to support students in launching a business or social venture. At the end, teams present learnings and pitch their venture for further seed funding.  (Click here to learn more about this program and how to DENT’s mission.)

According to Ms. Burnett, ‘Fashion Denters‘ applied Design Thinking to the world of fashion and learned the value of brainstorming, empathy, and iteration within the scope of fashion Design. Students learned basics around fashion illustration, creating for user needs through user profiles, sustainable fashion and upcycling, along with simple construction.

They conducted empathy interviews with shoppers at Towson Mall, and developed user profiles based on the feedback received. Interns were divided into four ‘fashion houses’, and working in teams were challenged to design a cohesive 8 look collection. They visited A Fabric Place in Roland Park to gather swatches, and were given a $20 budget at Savers to find base garments to upcycle.  They designed, carved, and printed  their own block printed garments.

Each fashion house had to pitch their line, presenting as a team to the group and a panel of judges. Click to watch a video of the selected ‘fashion house’ (which included 2 BDS students!) as they discuss their work, the challenges they faced and what lessons they learned. Congratulations to the folks at DENT, and to the coaches invested in making this program a success.