Run (The Student) Way

The Fashion Show produces leaders who will reinvent the textile and clothing industry

Written by Brianne Sanchez | Images by Kathryn Gamble

Scenes from the 2025 ISU Fashion Show

The Fashion Show, or “TFS,” begins long before the stage lights illuminate the first models on the runway. Before the thrum of electronica reverberates through the sold-out Stephens Auditorium crowd. Before the backstage hubbub of hair, makeup, and final fittings. Before accomplished guest judges fly in to score student designs. Before, even, the first stitch on any garment is sewn. 

Nearly a year before its big night, TFS planning gets underway as aspiring student leaders interview for top production roles. Once chosen, four producers cast a collective vision. They coordinate across 15 committees and with more than 200 of their peers to stage a two-hour creative spectacle. 

“It’s an exclamation mark experience,” says teaching professor Sarah Bennett-George (’06, ’11), who has served as TFS faculty advisor for 13 of its 43-years. “[The students involved] get to put together everything they’ve learned and, after all the late nights and sweat and tears, give people a glimpse of what they love and have worked hard at.” 

Whether directing, designing, marketing, or modeling, contributing to such a large-scale undertaking is much more than a moment for students to strut their stuff. Months of preparation include ambitious outreach and philanthropic initiatives alongside innovative designs. Now among the nation’s largest student-produced annual fashion shows, TFS develops the next generation of leaders who will reinvent the multibillion-dollar textile and clothing industry. Enthusiastic engagement from prospective students and alumni perpetuates the show’s success.

Instilling fashion aspirations 

Marlo Belknap and Jack Leuer
Garments from Parade, the show’s guest designer, are modeled by Marlo Belknap and Jack Leuer (’25).

For this year’s co-producers, landing a leadership role with TFS fulfills a long-held goal. After missing out on opportunities to get involved during his freshman year, Owen Abrahamsen (’25) secured a front-row seat to the show. He remembers sitting in awe of the experience.

“Seeing how the producers carried themselves on stage, I knew this was something I wanted,” says the creative and technical design major from Brownsville, Vermont.

A visual merchandising internship and a summer job at a Coach store in upstate New York gave him experience and connections to industry leaders. His senior year, Abrahamsen rose to the role of co-outreach producer and contributed two runway collections. He also introduced his team to the show’s guest designer, Parade, a size-inclusive and sustainable intimates brand. He befriended Raquelle Puglisi, now Parade’s senior brand marketing manager, during his summer job at Coach.

“It was important to find a guest company that aligned with how we wanted the fashion show to feel, look, and be perceived,” Abrahamsen says. “Parade promotes both cultural inclusivity and body positivity.”

For many involved in TFS, their interest in the event starts pre-enrollment. Prospective students can attend “Behind the Scenes Day,” which gives them a first-hand look at all four degree focus areas: creative and technical design, merchandising and retail analytics, product development for apparel and soft goods, and fashion communications. The Fashion Show dress rehearsal caps off a day of campus tours, workshops, and panels. The experience inspired co-outreach producer Becca Parker (’25) to commit to Iowa State.

“I was choosing between 10 different colleges at that point,” says the recent alum from Libertyville, Illinois. “I decided to go on the (then virtual) ‘Behind the Scenes Day’ event and that’s how I heard about the show. I got involved in three different TFS committees over my time, and now we’re here.”

In her role as co-outreach producer, Parker helped spearhead this year’s record-breaking $44,422 FundISU campaign. Crowdfunding underwrites production expenses for future shows and contributes to several scholarships awarded to TFS participants.

Full-circle moments

Weeks before the runway show, accomplished alumni assess garments as guest judges, scoring according to their expertise. They consider originality and creativity, construction and fit, and relevance to current market trends, among other criteria. Serving on this year’s review panel felt like a full-circle moment for Blaze Best (’19), associate designer at the menswear brand Todd Snyder.

“I know the weeks leading up to [TFS] are super stressful for everyone involved, but that’s how it feels when you do one in the industry,” Best says. “I love that pressure.”

Victoria Silvar
Victoria Silvar (’25) models a design by Kai Huntoon.

His involvement with TFS led to a career-launching creative design internship with the menswear brand founded by Todd Snyder (’92). This year, Kai Huntoon (’25) earned that competitive opportunity; he received the Lora and Russ Talbot ISU Fashion Show Best in Show Scholarship for his avant-garde collections that captured judges’ attention.

Huntoon’s eye-catching ensembles opened and closed this year’s event, but it was his beautifully constructed handbag that first impressed Best.

“Off the gate, you could tell that there’s a high level of craftsmanship as well as storytelling in the great design details that he uses,” Best says. “Then there’s [Kai’s] distinct and unique taste and how he goes about his collections. He goes above and beyond.”

Huntoon, who grew up in central Iowa, sees a creative career in his future. He is also highly involved in “TREND,” a student-run magazine. Whether Huntoon follows in the footsteps of Best and Snyder or pivots to publishing, he’ll be pursuing a passion.

“I’m a big dreamer,” Huntoon says. “I would love to have my own brand someday, or work at a top-tier fashion house. I’m also really interested in creative direction for a fashion or lifestyle magazine.”

Looking back, alumni in the audience recognize how participating in TFS shaped their Iowa State experience. It’s not just about career connections. For many, immersing themselves in the event leads to lifelong friendships.

“The Fashion Show is a special community,” says Sadie Besch (’24), who served as an outreach producer her senior year.

Now working in Boston as an allocation analyst in the TJ Maxx handbag department, Besch joined fellow TFS alumni at a pre-show reception. The recent fashion, design and merchandising program graduates at her table all landed roles in their areas of interest at big-name brands like Dior, in promotional apparel, and on the brand marketing team of the Kansas City Chiefs. Cheering current students on — this time as spectators — is the ultimate reunion.

“[The students involved] get to put together everything they’ve learned and, after all the late nights and sweat and tears, give people a glimpse of what they love and have worked hard at.” - Sarah Bennett-George

A fashion (r)evolution

In the weeks leading up to The Fashion Show, students can be found meticulously draping material on industrial design forms while the buzz of sewing machines and the occasional thud of a steel beam going into place fills the air. The large windows in MacKay Hall’s classrooms overlook the LeBaron Hall construction site, which will soon provide a state-of-the-art home for Iowa State’s fashion program.

Lebaron mock up
Rendering by BBS Architects

While the MacKay sewing labs are temporary spaces, the program ensures students have access to the cutting-edge technology needed to power their future careers.

“The sewing labs have always been a home away from home for me,” Abrahamsen says. “I’ve always been impressed by how many resources we have available. New machines improve how we construct our garments, too. I used the industrial cover stitch machine a lot within the construction of my senior line.”

Student designers also use equipment in the Digital Apparel and Textiles Studio to incorporate digitally printed textiles and embroidery into their runway projects.

Though the trends have changed since The Fashion Show started as a simple showcase in MacKay Hall in 1982, Iowa State’s commitment to a hands-on education with a focus on textile science, innovation, and creativity that prepares students for careers in the global fashion industry remains steadfast.

The new LeBaron Hall is scheduled to open in fall 2026 with additional projects planned for the overall Health and Human Sciences Complex.