Virginia Commonwealth University is set in the urban environment of Richmond, VA. The Fashion Design and Merchandising Program is a part of the School of Arts, which is ranked as the top public art school in the U.S.
During a visit to campus in 2015 Donwan Harrell, owner and designer of PRPS Jeans, as well as a Virginia Commonwealth University School of the Arts alum, shared his career experiences. He received a Bachelor of Fine Arts with a concentration in fashion design from the Department of Fashion Design and Merchandising in 1989 and proceeded to work as a designer for Robert Stock, DKNY and Nike. He was the international director for organized team sports at Nike based in Hong Kong.
During his tenure in that position, he designed uniforms for most of the National Basketball Association teams, international Olympic teams and several national teams participating in the 1999 Rugby World Cup and 2002 FIFA World Cup. Harrell also detailed his vision for the new international program—jeanology.
The idea for the jeanology program came from Harrell. The denim industry is a $14 billion business in the United States alone. Harrell chose VCU, his alma mater, to give his time, skills and knowledge to interested students to learn about this booming industry.
Jeanology is a three-part experiential learning program taught by Harrell that can earn participants six academic credits. Part one (two weeks three credits) begins in Richmond on the VCU campus with the history of indigo and the early denim jean pioneers. Fiber, weaving patterns and wash methods are also covered along with how to compile “tech packs” to industry standards.
Three additional credits are earned in parts two and three. Part two of jeanology continues with a week in New York City at the PRPS offices. Here, students witness first-hand the operations of a successful denim company. They interact with the sales, production and design departments, learning how to “speak” denim and how to prepare a portfolio worthy of the high-end denim brands. The jeanology program concludes with a trip to Portugal or Columbia, where students experience all the aspects of the denim factory—machinery, methods, chemicals and applications. Students are given a raw denim jean and access to all the industrial machines to creatively produce their own desired product.
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