American apparel company Gap, Harlem’s Fashion Row (HFR), an agency for underrepresented African American and Latino designers, and HFR’s non-profit subsidiary Icon360 have announced ten fashion departments at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) as winners of ‘Closing the Gap’ scholarships. They will receive awards from a pool of $510,000.
Launched through Gap’s ongoing partnership with HFR, ‘Closing the Gap’ aims to strengthen educational opportunities for the next generation of Black fashion leaders and provide a platform that empowers Black students to propel their studies and drive innovation within the fashion industry.
Additionally, Gap and Icon360 will partner to provide mentorship and internship opportunities to students currently enrolled in each of the winning HBCU programmes, Gap and HFR said in a joint press release.
“It is a great honour for us to partner with a global leader in the fashion world to kick off the inaugural awards ceremony that will turn into a yearly event. We are coming together as one to not only address pipeline issues of diversity and inclusion in the industry but also to help give them tools and guidance the next generation needs to take the fashion industry to new heights,” said Brandice Daniel, founder and CEO of HFR.
