CFDA Announces 2022 Scholar Award Recipients

The Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) has announced the 26 recipients of the 2022 CFDA Scholar Awards.

This year, the CFDA considered a total of 372 submissions through an open-access application under the criteria of financial need, talent and professional potential. The 2022 selection committee included Abrima Erwiah of Studio One Eighty Nine; Edvin Thompson of Theophilio; Dominique Drakeford of Sustainable Brooklyn; Peter Hu of 3.1 Phillip Lim; fashion environmentalist Runa Ray; digital creator Avani Gregg; Emily Chou of Nestle; Kelly Patterson of The Door; Tom and Mara Hutton of the Geoffrey Beene Foundation; Marisa Schiestl-Swarovski and Maika Nakaoka of the Swarovski Foundation and Sara Kozlowski of the CFDA.

“The CFDA continues to invest in the future of the American fashion industry and its ecosystem,” said CFDA chief executive officer Steven Kolb in a statement. “Our 2022 goal was to meet or exceed the 81 percent of last year’s scholarships awarded to diverse and underrepresented student design talent, and we’re proud to have reached this goal.”

For 2022, the CFDA added four new scholarships to its roster, which were made possible by designated funds through CFDA donations by digital creator Avani Gregg and by Häagen-Dazs. Additionally, the Coach Foundation is offering 15 scholarships under a new CFDA x Coach Dream It Real Circular Design Scholarship, which intends to equip the next generation of designers with the necessary skills for a more sustainable approach to design via education, mentorship and financial support.

“The circular design scholarship we are introducing today with the CFDA is part of our vision to create a better, brighter future for our industry,” said Coach creative director Stuart Vevers. “It’s a celebration, too, of the talent and creativity of our scholars and their passion for co-creating this brighter future with us.”

Among the various awards, the 2022 CFDA Design Scholar Award will grant $25,000 USD each to Maliki Gilbert, Savannah College of Art and Design; Drake Dabbs, The University of Texas at Austin (undergraduate), and Jasmin Risk, Parsons School of Design (graduate).

The scholarship by Avani Gregg of $25,000 USD will go to Tara Sears, Marist College, and $25,000 USD scholarships by Häagen-Dazs will be given to Alissa Divak, Marist College; Arjahn Cox, Parsons; Bradford Billingsley, Parsons, and Heejin Hwang, Fashion Institute of Technology.

The CFDA x Coach Dream It Real Circular Design Scholarship will award $200,000 USD to Andrea Cordova, FIT; Angel Pan, Parsons; Anna (Grace) Gordon, Parsons; Blake DeWitt, FIT; Dylan Unzicker-Krone, FIT; Elizabeth Dewald, Parsons; Farah Shahrour, Kent State University; Helen Sotropa, Parsons; Keanu Williams, FIT; Lydia Ross, Academy of Art University; Marina Matozzo, Marist College; Ping Edmunds, FIT; Samuel Pickett, Parsons; Vivian Luo, Parsons, and Yue Zi, Rhode Island School of Design.

Additionally, the Re: Generation Innovation Scholar Award CFDA + Swarovski Foundation will bestow $30,000 USD to Isabella Kostrzewa, Parsons. The $25,000 USD Liz Claiborne Design for Impactful Future Scholar Award will be given to Melany Corchado, Parsons, and the $50,000 USD Geoffrey Beene Design Masters Scholar Award will go to Haixi Ren, Parsons.

In more fashion news, Harlem’s Fashion Row has partnered with LVMH to create a new Virgil Abloh award.