Southern students win big at Night of Spectacles

May 2, 2016

Georgia Southern Fashion Merchandising and Apparel students took home first and second place at the ninth annual Night of Spectacles on April 2 in Atlanta for creating unique fashions from recycled eyewear.

Sidney Walker, a senior fashion merchandising and apparel design (FMAD) major, earned a $1,000 scholarship for first place, and Acacia Miller, senior FMAD major, earned a $500 scholarship for second place.

The fashion show benefits the Georgia Lions Lighthouse foundation, a nonprofit statewide provider of comprehensive vision and hearing services for uninsured and underinsured Georgians. The event challenges designers to create high fashion looks embellished with and inspired by broken eyewear collected through the Lighthouse’s recycling program.

“The event forced me to challenge my creative ability and made me feel more secure as a designer,” Walker said. “Winning the competition has given me an indescribable confidence.”

Not only did eight Georgia Southern University students represent the College of Health and Human Sciences FMAD program as designers at the event, but alumna Felicia Ruiz also represented the program as an official judge.

“The judges were very impressed by the work of our students,” Hope Simpara, assistant professor for the School of Human Ecology said. “This was the eighth year Georgia Southern was represented at the Night of Spectacles with students from our program being awarded first place the last three years.”

Georgia Southern University, a public Carnegie Doctoral/Research University founded in 1906, offers approximately 125 degree programs serving nearly 20,500 students. Through eight colleges, the University offers bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degree programs built on more than a century of academic achievement. Georgia Southern is recognized for its student-centered and hands-on approach to education. GeorgiaSouthern.edu.