Beth Anne Demeter
Sears, Roebuck & Company

Internal Auditing: The Internal Auditing department of any corporation serves as a review function to ensure internal controls are appropriately developed and implemented. All companies employ accountants and financial oversight professionals (known as external auditors in large corporations, or Deloitte & Touche for Sears), while large corporations designate internal audit functions. The Sears Internal Audit department is on the large side, consisting of 55 associates who are each assigned to a different team or audit assignment – Corporate, Retail, Credit or IT. Personally, I was hired as a Full-line (all merchandise, think – big, mall Sears store) auditor, transferred for nine months onto the Credit audit team, then recently transferred back to the Full-line area.

“Audits” can take many forms; they may consist of informal reviews to gather opinions, traditional audits testing transactions and processes, consulting projects requested by a business or legal/compliance reviews. Potential processes to be reviewed are ranked according to their risk to the organization (risk consists of two components: severity of impact such as a $200 or $2 billion loss, and likeliness of occurrence). Higher risk projects and special management requests are added to the annual audit plan.

Members of the audit staff meet with Sears executives to determine objectives and expectations prior to an audit being started. Process flowcharts are developed which include key controls (steps in the process, which ensure the overall objectives are attained). Tests are designed to determine if these controls actually work. An example of a business objective is generating sales. Store associates provide customers with product knowledge and benefits, encouraging them to buy. Buyers then evaluate product, sales and marketing trends to determine why a product sold and how to improve future performance. The sales and monitoring methods associates and buyers perform are all examples of controls, which roll up into achieving the business objective of generating sales. As an auditor, I am responsible for flowcharting, testing, evaluating and improving these controls and control objectives.

Professional Comments: As stated above, I accepted the position with Sears to gain visibility to a wealth of corporate functions, particularly since I didn’t know what I “wanted to do when I grew up”. My dual major gave me a distinct advantage in knowledge and preparation for my assignments. Auditing and travelling to stores around the country has given me a perspective not enjoyed behind a desk; I’ve met and discussed corporate opportunities with sales associates and senior executives.

I sincerely enjoy my job, considering the amount of exposure I have to Sears’ senior executives and various businesses. Different assignments require me to learn systems and processes in which I had no prior interest but now appreciate; I have also developed strong relationships with business leaders. But the most self-fulfilling aspect of my job is customer service/satisfaction, since any audit essentially responds to business requests with actual observations to make customer-centric improvements. The fact that my profitability recommendations are taken seriously, being read by the CEO, provide me with a very high level of personal satisfaction.

Educational Remarks: My education at Kent’s School of Fashion Design and Merchandising gave me a unique knowledge of the retail industry. Real-world success is measured by application of classroom concepts and the Fashion school’s intimate relationship and extern-/internship arrangements with major companies (e.g., Sears, JC Penney, Simplicity, Walt Disney) allowed me to gain valuable on-the-job experience and skills. The instruction and encouragement of experienced and dedicated professors shaped my education into a valuable life prep-course. My dual major also gave me distinct career advantages in that I was able to combine retail process knowledge with an analytical perspective.

The Fashion school’s continual emphasis on developing relationships encouraged me to strengthen past and create future relationships. I’m certain this strong base will be my springboard into an exciting, dynamic future.

Kristin Aldana-Lerin
Assistant editor, Life & Leisure Section   Sun.Star Cebu

For the past four years, I’ve been working as the assistant editor of the life & leisure section of Sun.Star Cebu, our city’s leading newspaper.

My job description in a sentence? Do what I gotta do to help get our section out the next day. The key word being “help” since working at a newspaper is one humongous group effort, pretty much like getting a collection together. Just as you need your designers, fabric sourcers, patternmakers, cutters and sewers (sorry if I left anyone out, didn’t mean to, just trying to get a point across), we have our writers, photographers, editors, lay-out artists and printers---all with their own special magic to add to the brew. Lack one link and pouf! No fashion collection. No life and leisure section.
The process behind the finished product—newspaper or knockout designer label-- is the same: spotting trends, doing research, reinventing classics and creating new ones…whatever it takes to keep your buyers happy and coming back for more.

The most valuable things I’ve gotten out of my Kent State education? Grace under pressure and confidence amidst chaos. Just think about it… A grubby and griping fashion student on “the day of a presentation” (better known as “the morning after an all-nighter”)? Unheard of! All you have to do is pull off you pajamas, slap on a trendy outfit (doesn’t matter if you haven’t taken a shower yet because there’s no time, just don’t forget to brush your teeth!), down five cups of coffee (or however much you need to keep you walking), paste on your most convincing “I-know-exactly-what-I’m-talking-about-face” and on with the show!

Karen Brost
Designer for Jessie della Femina

Karen Brost graduated in Fashion Design in 1991. Currently she is a designer for Jessie della Femina and she is contemplating the launch of a new line called Fray. While in New York in October 2002, the school director saw windows at Bergdorf that featured the work of Karen!

 

Denise Damas Dount
Freelance CAD designer

Denise Damas Daunt graduated in 1996 in Fashion Design. Today she works as a freelance CAD designer in New York. She is married and lives in Roosevelt, NY. One of her major CAD accounts is with Liz Claiborne.

Michael Cunningham
Design Manager for Joan Vass

Michael Cunningham, design graduate of 1998, now is Design Manager for Joan Vass in New York. Michael is shown here in his office surrounded by his creations for Vass.

Karen Barbiere
Designer for Saks, Inc.

Creates a line called Relativity to be sold at Parisians Stores. She is pictured here in her Seventh Avenue office surrounded by some of her most recent creations. Karen graduated in design in 1993.

Jannette Antochow
Intern

Everyone who works at the studio including, Lindsay Markos
(KSU FD Major 2001) and Hanna Hartnell (owner/designer)

Merellyn Bowers
Human Resource Administrator, Bloomingdale’s

I received my degree in Elementary Education from Kent State University in 1976. Having been born and raised in Kent, it was certainly the logical choice for me at the time. I helped finance my education with two jobs, which put me on the “five year program” that is so popular today! I have a daughter at Tulane University and I hope she doesn’t do the same! After completing my education, I did a year of substitute teaching, as well as various other jobs including playing piano for a small nightclub in Akron.

In 1986, my husband and daughter and I moved to the Washington DC metro area, and although my intention was to find a teaching job, I came to Bloomingdale’s department store for a temporary job during the holidays until I could find something in the education field. That was 16 years ago, and I am still with the company. My position is Human Resource Administrator for a store population of 250-300 employees not including management, and I have worked in the HR office most of my 16 years here.

My responsibilities include all interactions with prospective candidates such as screening, verifications, placements, compensation and hiring, as well as their training and development. I am responsible for all legal compliance, record keeping, payroll, performance appraisals, staff turnover and general reporting. Our office is responsible for store recognition and special programs as well. I have a successful Internship program where we offer unpaid internships (but the storewide discount is great!) to college students interested in a career in the fashion industry. These students have experiences throughout the store in areas such as Human Resources, Visual Merchandising, Public Relations, Loss Prevention, sales an clerical functions. Some of my former interns are now in positions such as buyers with Bloomingdale’s, vendor representatives, and managers. With its innovative, trend-setting merchandise, Bloomingdale’s sets itself apart from the retail arena and is truly an icon in American culture.

At present, we have 27 stores in 11 states, with an exciting new location planned for a warehouse in the Soho district of New York as our latest venture. I think that, although Kent State did not have the Fashion School when I attended (or that beautiful fashion museum!), my education at Kent State prepared me to thrive in the fast-paced retail environment where finding the best employees contributes to an unparalleled shopping experience.

Samuel L. Broida
Cutting Room Frabrics

President and owner of Cutting Room Fabrics. Due to my education at Shannon Rodgers & Jerry Silverman School of Fashion Design & Merchandising, and my internship and job in the executive training program at Dillards Department store, I’m able to operate the day to day aspects of a small retail fabric store. These jobs also include buying, managing, bookkeeping and customer service.

Abby Bouton
Owner, Imagination Designs Unlimited

I started my own company, Imagination Designs Unlimited in February, 2001. I specialize in custom costume design for teams and soloists in dance, drill teams, flag corps, majorettes, etc. I’m involved in the entire process from design, patternmaking, production, to delivery. I have applied many of the classes I studied at Kent State to the business. I research vendors for fabrics and trims, I track trends for designs, I even study history when the theme is retro. I also work on marketing and visual displays for trade shows and promotions. Sometimes, being my only employee can make for an exhausting week, but when I see a team on the floor, showing off their best, I know that I helped to make it happen.

Jonalyn Abraham Romeo
Director of Development and Marketing, Irene Murphy Lewis Corporation

Jonalyn Abraham Romeo is the Director of Development and Marketing for the New York based Irene Murphy Lewis Corporation, a tax-exempt public charity whose mission is to honor, preserve and share ancient indigenous cultures of healing and wholeness with the world in order to foster cross-cultural understanding. The IMLC records their stories, music and rituals, and in turn provide these communities with resources to improve the quality of their lives as an act of gratitude for their generosity. Jonalyn has been a avid promoter of an collaborator with Ms. Lewis on her projects for the last decade.

An advocate for children’s literacy and multicultural awareness, Jonalyn is also pursuing a Master’s Degree in Education from Slippery Rock University to one day teach children with special needs. Giving back is part of her mission and is why she has recommitted her life to the projects of the IMLC and special education. Her interpersonal and analytical abilities from a longstanding career in the fashion industry working for Mary McFadden as an Account Executive of the Couture and Designer Collections, earned her a seasoned and respected reputation in a tough industry. She was positioned as a front line executive and a liaison for sales, marketing, and distribution while managing the business and traveling the country extensively. She also served as Director of Sales and Public Relations for Heidi Weisel before securing and generating a successful consulting business with Saks Fifth Avenue in their prestigious Fifth Avenue Club. Jonalyn is a recipient of the 1999 Fashion Millennium Leader Award awarded by Kent State University, where she earned her Bachelor of Science Degree from the Rodgers and Silverman School of Fashion Design and Merchandising.

“The education I received at Kent State was invaluable in preparing me for my career in business. The school is very well-known in fashion houses and among New York executives for providing hard-working, ambitious interns and employees.”

 

Alexxis Avalon
Designer - Teacher, International Academy of Design and Technology

Alexxis Avalon, formerly known as Lisa Argiry, graduated in 1989 from the Rodgers and Silverman School of Fashion Design & Merchandising. She received an Honors Degree for participation in KSU’s Honors Program and the completion of an Honors Thesis entitled “The Creative Process of a Fashion Designer.”

Ms. Avalon’s interest in the creative process of designers has extended beyond her undergraduate years into graduate research at the University of South Florida in Tampa. After achieving her Masters Degree in Art Education, Ms. Avalon continued to pursue her Ph.D. in Education, where she is currently enrolled in dissertation hours for the final year of her research. Her dissertation focuses on the new ways that the arts are being used in three areas of research: medicine, therapy, and business. The creative process extends well beyond the classroom of artists and now is being found in hospitals, self-help centers, and the boardroom of business associates.

Her desire to continue her education and teach future designers of tomorrow is prevalent with the classes she presents at the International Academy of Design and Technology in Tampa, Florida. For the last eight years, Ms. Avalon has taught a wide range of classes at the Academy that include Color Theory, Fashion Illustration, Textile Science, Evolution of Fashion, The Study of Ethnic Dress, and Design Elements. The Academy has been an excellent academic setting in which she has had the ability to go beyond the classroom into real world scenarios. With their annual fashion show, Ms. Avalon has guided students in her workshops on how to illustrate fashions and present them in a portfolio.

As a member of the National Art Education Association and the Society for the Arts in Healthcare, Ms. Avalon strives to be in touch with how the arts activate the innate creative ability through these memberships and their conferences. She recently spent time touring Italy to see how the arts are being used there in order to be more involved with new perspectives in global trends. Presently, she is developing her own line of clothing.

Looking back on her experiences at the Rodgers & Silverman School of Fashion Design & Merchandising, Ms. Avalon is thankful for such a rich education. She participated in all of the many activities available within the program from the competitions to the fashions shows, as well as a newsletter editor for the then publication, IMAGE. All of her classes, presentations, and interactions with her professors and peers prepared her for her role as an educator of today.