Jacklynn Ramos is a graduate of the FIT Advertising and Marketing Communications Program. While in school she held internship positions in marketing, digital communications, and public relations. In her current role as Senior Specialist, Paid Social at Reprise, a digital marketing agency, she manages paid social media campaigns for a global, multibillion-dollar company in the healthcare industry.

Mallorie Dunn is a graduate of the FIT Fashion Design Program. She additionally has a degree in Art and Design Education from Pratt Institute. Post graduation, Mallorie worked in corporate fashion design in the Juniors sector, before switching to freelance work, and then launching her own business in Spring 2014 – SmartGlamour. Her work has appeared and she has been quoted in numerous publications including Oxygen, WSJ, PBS, Buzzfeed, UpWorthy, Cosmopolitan, Seventeen, TeenVogue, Huffington Post, Forbes, and more.

See Mallorie’s small business SmartGlamour here, and her full portfolio here.

Watch video: Mallorie Dunn is Transforming Body Positive Fashion – In Progress | Oxygen:

Kevin Tung is a graduate of the FIT Fashion Design program & Precollege at FIT. During his time at FIT, he studied abroad in Florence, Italy, and interned at Milly. Post-graduation, Kevin has had a diverse background in designing for companies like Milly, Aeropostale, Catherine Malandrino, T Tahari, and is currently an Associate Designer at White House Black Market. With his rich and current experience in working with fashion companies, Kevin is eager to share his journey with young designers who want to follow the fashion design path.

Passionate about sharing her experience as a fashion designer and entrepreneur,
Kathlin is an adjunct professor at Parsons School of Design and the Fashion Institute of
Technology. A mentor to countless students, Kathlin has been selected to lead high
profile projects for First Lady Michelle Obama and for the Charles James exhibition at
the Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute. She also was included in an elite
group of professors to develop special fashion programs for ZSTU, a prestigious fashion University in China.

A frequent speaker on fashion entrepreneurship, Kathlin has been a panelist at NYU,
Fordham University – Gabelli School of Business, Mount Holyoke, Fashion 2.0,
Womensphere, Ladies Who Launch, and The Washington Fashion Group. She is also a
mentor at XRC Labs, an accelerator for the next generations of disruptors in retail and
consumer goods at Parsons School of Design and DENYC’s mini MBA program for
fashion entrepreneurs at F.I.T.

After graduating with honors from Parsons School of Design, Kathlin honed her
knowledge of couture dressmaking techniques while working for top eveningwear
designers Arnold Scaasi and Carmen Marc Valvo. She currently consults with start up
fashion brands providing design, sourcing, production, and operations support.
Kathlin Argiro Collection dresses have been featured on the TODAY SHOW, THE VIEW
and What Not to Wear. In addition, they have been featured regularly in top national
magazines including VOGUE, IN STYLE, WOMENS WEAR DAILY, THE WASHINGTON POST, ELEGANT BRIDE, IN STYLE WEDDINGS, and MARTHA STEWART WEDDINGS.

The Kathlin Argiro Collection is a favorite amongst celebrities including style guru Stacy
London of What Not to Wear, the Today Show’s Katie Couric and Meredith Viera, and
Melissa Rivers for E Entertainment’s Red Carpet Oscars Show.

Website: www.KathlinArgiro.com

Jackie Gussin is a graduate of the FIT Textile Development and Marketing Program. During her time at FIT, she interned in buying and merchandising programs. Post graduation, Jackie became the Studio Services Coordinator at Barneys New York followed by a transition into the Saks Fifth Avenue Marketing Team where her responsibilities in the manager role encompass a mix of merchandising, management, operations and styling. With over a decade of experience in the fashion industry she offers insight into the jobs in the fashion merchandising industry focusing on client service excellence, goals achievement, versatility and financial impact.

Teaching Philosophy: 
Through the course I want to give the students an idea of what to prepare for in the competitive job market. I want them to take away problem solving techniques, presentation and networking skills, and efficiency strategies. I strive to create a course where students can foster a passion for the fashion industry to become a “lifelong learner” while  hopefully creating industry connections, grow their community for opportunities in the future. Through lecture, discussion, demonstrations, and presentations I promote an active learning space. 

Radmila Gurkovsky is a visual artist, educator and a creative arts therapist. She graduated from the Fashion Institute of Technology with BFA in 2008 and holds an MPS from Pratt Institute. Born in the dramatic yet fascinating climate of Siberia, Russia, surrounded by brutal and gloomy winter days she developed her interests in art at an early age as her escape into the vibrant, visual world of color, line and shape.  Having experienced frequent relocation with her family at an early age she believes to have been touched by many beautiful cultures to later bring that eclectic vision into her art making. As an artist and a creative art therapist Radmila uses her artistic upbringing along with expressive language refined during her professional development studies and offers it as a gateway into forming non-verbal dialogue that nourishes artistic perception and empowers creativity.

Radmila Teaches:

JSX 031 Basic Drawing Skills

JSX 038 Exploring Painting, Drawing, and Collage

Teaching Philosophy:

I encourage students to think creatively and experiment with a variety of styles and methodologies that help them discover their artistic selves. I’m a big fan of artistic tradition and believe that to be the window into forming unique artistic language of expression. I seek to offer my students a vision of art as a tool for self-expression that encompasses a holistic approach and one that inspects and strives to see the world with various mediums of expression.

Art by Radmila Gurkovsky

Blogs are sooo early 2000s… or are they? Blogs are a great way to store information and links. That’s why we’ve kept our Precollege Blog going all these years. We mainly used it for Instructor Spotlights and Student Highlights (you can check our archives!), but now we are going to use it for some resources for our Precollege learning community.

Each week we will highlight a topic, for example: pro tips on how to write your admissions essay, ways to find inspiration while social distancing, and special tips for creatives of all kinds.

This week we are looking at Google Arts and Culture. There’s so much to do on GA&C, we are jussssst going to focus on museums this week. Museums are great places to find inspiration and many are making their collections available virtually. You can now visit literally thousands of collections from home! Some museums you can virtually walk around in, for example, the Guggenheim Bilbao in Spain. Using the same image capture technology used for Google Street View, you can explore the iconic building and Richard Serra sculptures. Other museums have beautiful web-based galleries, for example, the Royal Museum of Fine Arts of Belgium. Some museums only have a few pieces from their collection on Google. For example, the Whitney Museum of American art has 60 pieces on Google but has over 20,000 images on their website. So, if your favorite museum isn’t on there check their direct website!

Do you have a favorite Museum? Let us know in the comments

Jill Topol has been a driving force in the photo/fashion industry for over 20 years. As a top celebrity fashion stylist, Jill has had the pleasure of calling Destiny’s Child/Beyoncé, N’SYNC and the Jonas Brothers as some of her steady high-profile clients. Jill’s work can be seen in publications including Harper’s Bazaar & Elle International, Vibe, Interview, Rolling Stone, Seventeen, People, Paper, Time, Newsday, New York Magazine, Mass Appeal, Out, Entertainment Weekly and Esquire.

Jill holds a BFA in Photography from School of Visual Arts, and is currently an adjunct professor at FIT in the FBM department.

Jill Topol Teaches:
JSX040 55A Fashion Merchandising: Trend Spotting
HFM060 55C Fashion Forecasting: Seeing into The Future

Teaching Philosophy:
From the moment a student enters my classroom, it’s my goal to help them explore their passion for fashion. I freely share stories from my own extensive career and teach them the ins and outs of the industry. Forecasting fashion trends means keeping your eyes wide open at all times to take in the beauty all around you. Sometimes it’s the things we least expect that will inspire us the most.

Industry Experience:

• Freelance Fashion Stylist for 20+ years
• Fashion Director at Mass Appeal Magazine
• Fashion Editor at Black Book Magazine
• Senior Fashion Stylist for E! and Style Network
• Accessories Director for Moxiegirl (an Urban Outfitters backed magalog)
• Product Development / Trend Forecasting for Delia’s & Wanted Shoes
• Contributing writer for The Huff Post covering topics in fashion and parenting

Lisbeth Jimenez is an NCIDQ certified designer with a Bachelor’s degree in Interior Design from the Fashion Institute of Technology. She joined the commercial firm TPGArchitecture in 2016, and has a background in residential and commercial interior design. In her daily work, Lisbeth challenges herself to produce exceptional, transformational design concepts, creating beneficial spaces that positively impact her clients and their environment. With an enthusiasm to take on any project, Lisbeth thrives on the creative process of solving complex design challenges. Her most recent contributions includes an accessible bedroom/bathroom for George to The Rescue — a home improvement TV show on NBC. Outside of work, Lisbeth participates in interior design pro-bono projects, and has designed spaces for a number of non-profit organizations such as the Bowery Mission Center and Restore NYC. Her efforts have been recognized across a number of publications such as Fast Company and Interior + Sources.

Lisbeth Teaches:
HSX 055 55B SUN: Exploring Interior Design
Fall Semester      Spring Semester     Summer Semester

Teaching Philosophy:
My goal is to inspire students to measure their success by the amount of difference they make. With Interior Design, we have the ability to change people’s lives with the environments we design. Let’s make a difference together while being creative.

Industry Experience:

• TPGArchitecture- NY commercial firm
• Integrated Service Learning Project- NY volunteer Interior Design services
• Lembo Design- NY High-End Residential Firm

Work by Lisbeth Jimenez