PARSONS THE NEW SCHOOL FOR DESIGN ESTABLISHES DONNA KARAN PROFESSORSHIP IN FASHION DESIGN

Gift from Fashion Design Icon and Parsons Alumna Donna Karan will Help Create Innovative Master of Fine Arts Program in Fashion Design and Society

NEW YORK, April 24, 2006-Parsons The New School for Design and renowned designer and Parsons alumna Donna Karan have announced the establishment of the Donna Karan Professorship in Fashion Design. The professorship is the initial step toward creating a new Master of Fine Arts Program in Fashion Design and Society at Parsons, which will be the first program of its kind in the United States. The gift comes as the school celebrates the centennial of its acclaimed Fashion Design Program, which also was the first of its kind in the nation when it was established in 1906.

Donna Karan is not only one of the university’s most esteemed alumni, but has played an active role in supporting its academic growth as a member of Parsons board of governors, said New School President Bob Kerrey. Her support has ranged from special projects that have enabled students to engage in real-world issues, to a lecture series dedicated to her late husband Stephen Weiss that has brought innovative business thinkers to our campus, and now this important gift to jumpstart the creation of an MFA program.

The gift was announced at the schools At the Parsons Table series, where Karan joined Parsons Dean Paul Goldberger in conversation about her career and broader issues in the field of design. Donna Karan is one of America’s most influential fashion designers, said Dean Goldberger. By taking a broader view of fashion that extends beyond apparel to address cultural and social issues, Karan defined a new chapter in American fashion that is as relevant today is when she founded her company in the mid-1980s.

"My Parsons education helped open my eyes to a broader perspective on fashion and its influence on everyday life," said Karan. "It is my hope that the Fashion Design and Society MFA program will encourage a new generation of designers to explore the global language of design and discover new and unexpected ways in which fashion affects our world and its many cultures."

The intensive two-year MFA program is envisioned as an advanced academy for the study of fashion design that will educate 40 to 60 students selected through a rigorous admissions process. Its central focus will be to provide more sophisticated training for designers who already demonstrate exceptional talent in the field. These top students will further develop and broaden their skills under the guidance of leading design experts. The program will place fashion within a global context, educating designers to become cultural barometers, reflecting both contemporary life and the multicultural nature of the fashion industry. Students will explore the different ways in which societies utilize fashion as an expression of cultural tradition and personal identity. The program will be a fully international academic environment, with a faculty and student body recruited from around the world.

To provide aspiring designers with the skills necessary to succeed in the field, the program will be interdisciplinary in nature and incorporate such studies as business, marketing, technology, ecology and design history. We expect that the MFA program will influence our undergraduate fashion program, and will have a larger impact on general approaches to fashion studies and design, said Dean Goldberger.

About Parsons Fashion Design

With the launch of the first fashion design program in America in 1906, Parsons The New School for Design is credited with giving birth to Seventh Avenue, the epicenter of American fashion. Today, it is estimated that 70 percent of the design talent on Seventh Avenue is Parsons educated. Parsons graduates form a whos who list in fashion, from such legendary designers as Adrian, Claire McCardell, and Norman Norell, to industry leaders Tom Ford, Marc Jacobs, Donna Karan, Isaac Mizrahi, Narciso Rodriguez, and Yeohlee Teng, to emerging talents such as Doo.Ri, Derek Lam, Proenza Schouler, Behnaz Sarafpour, Peter Som, Vena Cava and Ashleigh Verrier. Parsons offers a Bachelors of Fine Arts degree in Fashion Design, and currently approximately 500 students are enrolled in the program. Students confront the challenges of the real world of the fashion industry while cultivating a personal design philosophy that is fully realized in a senior year thesis collection.

About Donna Karan

Donna Karan established her signature label in 1984 with late husband Stephan Weiss, which was acquired by the French luxury conglomerate, LVMH, Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton in 2001. The companys phenomenal success stemmed from Karans desire to design modern clothes for modern people, founded on a simple bodysuit that became an instant fashion classic. Karan conceived of a system of dressing based on seven pieces that work together to create an entire wardrobe.

After finishing her second year of studies at Parsons in 1966, Karan was hired by Anne Klein (she later received her bachelors degree in 1987, and also earned an honorary doctorate from Parsons in 2004). After three years as an associate designer, Karan was named successor following Klein’s death in 1974. Louis DellOlio, a classmate and friend of hers from Parsons, joined her a year later and together they designed The Anne Klein Collection. In 1982, Karan created Anne Klein II, originating the concept of bridge and lifestyle dressing in fashion.

Karan has received numerous accolades throughout her career. The Council of Fashion Designers of America has saluted her an unprecedented seven times, including its lifetime achievement award in 2004. That same year Fashion Group International gave Karan its Superstar Award, the first ever given to an American designer.

About Parsons The New School for Design

Located in the heart of New York City, Parsons The New School for Design is one of the largest and most prestigious degree-granting colleges of art and design in the nation, with approximately 3,500 students in degree programs from all 50 states and approximately 60 countries. Parsons has been a forerunner in the field of art and design since its founding in 1896. By locating visual beauty in the ordinary things of middle-class American life, Parsons virtually invented the modern concept of design in America. In 1970, Parsons became a division of The New School, to benefit academically from being part of a larger university with access to a full range of arts and social sciences. In 2005, the schools name was changed to Parsons The New School for Design. Parsons rigorous programs and distinguished faculty embrace curricular innovation, pioneer new uses of technology, and instill in students a global perspective in design. For more information, visit www.parsons.newschool.edu.