Hello Everyone,

It has been too long since I gave my last one but a lot has been going on. As being part of a growing student organization there is more and more work that comes up, with that in mind your time management skills, diet and everything else has to be near perfect.  With all of this in mind you still have to allowe yourself to have a  little bit of a social life. so you do not become to stressed out.  Well since the last post there has been another model workshop which did not go as well, but with every situation you learn and are better prepared for the next one. M.O.D.A in general has been coming together pretty well. This is the first year where I am on the executive board so the closer it gets to show time the crazier my schedule gets while still maintaining work, school and a decent personal life. However, there were a few set backs such as falling under the weather for about a week. This is probably what a ton of studetns faced in the past month or two and I thought it could bypass me but it got me! The executive board and friends really helped me out during this time which I am very grateful for. We, as in M.O.D.A, have also been learning about different situations and what to do, which is great because that is part of being in college and learning real life experiences. One person in particular, in M.O.D.A, just headed a small fashion show for M.O.D.A and she said that  there was quite a bit of a learning that she had done while preparing for the show and the other people in the committee gave me similar responses. Even though fashion shows can be very stressful it all pays off in the end and that is why I love helping with shows. M.O.D.A’s fashion show is December 4th and 5th in the Bernhard Center this year which is another big change for us. We are learning to work with a space that most of us are not familiar with and making it work. So far it has been great and things have been coming together. Student life here at Western has almost changed my path in life in the best direction way.I could not imagine what I would be doing if I did not work up the courage to join an organization of around 100 people where I did not know anyone. Now, I am the vice president of it and I am still enjoying every minute of it. I highly recomment joining anything on campus so it gives you the opportunity to meet more and more people everyday. I hope everyone has a great break!!!!!

Hello Everyone,

This week was like any other week, busy. We had another successful MODA meeting on Monday night. Our fundraising committee has been doing a great job coming up with different and fun ideas. One of them is going to be on Thursday, November 12th. We are going to have a band play and a fashion show go on at the same time at the Strutt. I have never been there but I have heard it is a great place, especially to study. This week was also the week I called to the high school students that were accepted into the Project M.O.D.A program. It is a program for high school students in the surrounding areas, they apply and if they are accepted then mentors from M.O.D.A will teach them how to sew a garment throughout the year and premiere at our spring show. I am always a little worried but when I called the students to tell them about being accepted they were so excited! Some of the students were so excited they screamed on the phone which made my day even better knowing they really appreciate the program.  With school, work and M.O.D.A madness every week I am usually dead tired by Thursday , but everything is worth it. I tried to relax this weekend by going out a little, but I really should have just slept. I am learning every day how important it is to have balance. People just want to work, work and more work without any play. I used to do that and it actually made me get behind because of all the stress that built up. I hope this next week will go pretty smooth, but you never know.

This week and last week was a bit crazy to say the least. Work, school, tests, moda and more were all coming down at the same time. Last week, Zoe Valette and I went around to a few Kalamazoo Public Schools  to talk about Project MODA and leave some applications for those who were interested.  On Sunday were model auditions for MODA’s fall show this year and that went pretty well. We had around eighty people try out and accepted a little over 40 females and some were male. It was pretty exciting to see more and more males try out and get involved with fashion each year…especially straight men! Now, I am just trying to stay organized while maintaining the responsibilities I have been given. Hopefully by the end of next week, MODA will start selling tickets to the show and finalize other details. It is pretty exciting seeing everything,even my own designs, slowly coming together.

Hello, my name is Alana and I am a junior here at Western Michigan University. I am also a transfer student from Lansing Community College and my hometown is Haslett, MI. For the past two years at Western I have really tried to be outgoing and started putting myself out there to better my skills and resume. I have been part of WSA for a semester which taught me a little on how student government works within a university. However, I found my passion in fashion. I am a Textile and Apparel Studies: Fashion Design major and from those classes I was introduced to MODA. MODA or Merchandising Opportunity Design Association is a fashion based registered student organization here at Western. I joined MODA as soon as I arrived at Western and has been in the design committee ever since. MODA now has over one hundred and twenty members and I am now also on their executive board as well as still design. Each week brings new task, new challenges, which then sometimes leads to craziness but it is what I live for. This past week I have been preparing for Project MODA which is a mentorship program started two years ago by Liza Nay with four students and now has grown to thirteen students. The students are from the Kalamazoo Public  School System and surrounding areas in which, they apply and if accepted will be taught on how to sew for the entire school year and will premiere their garment that they have sewn for themselves at MODA’s spring fashion show. Zoe Valette and I are coordinating Project MODA together and we are excited to start off a brand new year. My life is never boring during the school year with keeping track of classes, work, Project MODA and of course MODA but I would not have it any other way.