A Lamar Dodd School of Art student is setting the bar as the first student from the university in history to be a finalist for the YMA Fashion Scholarship Fund.

Jeremy Kalteux, a junior fabric design major from Woodstock and one of the eight finalists for the fund, is the proud bearer of the prestigious title.

The YMA Fashion Scholarship Fund, a nonprofit organization founded in 1937, still stands true to its mission: to identify young, emerging talent in the fashion industry and help them succeed in the industry through providing scholarships, education and employment opportunities, according to the organization’s website.

The application process includes a written case study competition in one of the four following categories: marketing and merchandising, design and product development, technology and analytics or supply chain management. This year’s case study topic was globalization in the fashion industry.

Kalteux chose to enter the contest in the design and product development category and he developed digital designs for a swimwear line for Spanx, a brand known for its shapewear technology.

“I wanted to create something that truly wasn’t on the market,” Kalteux said. “It was a bunch of sketching and a bunch of research, and most people spent around 100-150 hours on their case studies.”

Out of all the applicants, this year, 196 of them were selected to be general scholars and eight were finalists. General scholars each received $5,000, finalists received $15,000 and the winner received $35,000. This year, the competition was stiff and two winners between the finalists received the grand prize.  

With the scholarship money, Kalteux hopes to help pay off his student loans and also use the money during the summer for his pending internship in New York.

“To be in the top eight from all across the nation was a dream and an honor,” Kalteux said. “I brought something to the table and I earned it.”

Find the full feature in the Red and Black here.