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Fashion Institute of Technology

Coordinates: 40°44′48″N 73°59′39″W / 40.74667°N 73.99417°W / 40.74667; -73.99417
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Fashion Institute of Technology
Former name
Fashion Institute of Technology and Design
TypePublic community college[disputed – discuss] and fashion school
Established1944; 82 years ago (1944)
Parent institution
State University of New York
PresidentJason Schupbach
Students8,158 (fall 2025)[1]
Undergraduates7,880 (fall 2025)
Postgraduates278 (fall 2025)
Location
New York City
,
United States

40°44′48″N 73°59′39″W / 40.74667°N 73.99417°W / 40.74667; -73.99417
CampusUrban, 1.5 blocks
NicknameTigers
MascotStitch
Websitefitnyc.edu Edit this at Wikidata
Map

The Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) is a public community college[a][disputed – discuss] and fashion school under the State University of New York, in New York City. It focuses on art, business, design, mass communication, and technology connected to the fashion industry. It was founded in 1944.[2]

History

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The Fashion Institute of Technology and Design was founded in 1944 as a two-year technical institute, operated by the New York City Board of Education and Educational Foundation for the Apparel Industry, a group composed of members of management and labor in the garment and fashion industry. The institute operated out of the Central High School of Needle Trades, and tuition was free.[3] In 1951, the institute was named the Fashion Institute of Technology when it became a community college in the State University of New York (SUNY) and began offering associate degrees. Mortimer C. Ritter, who ran the institute since it's founding, become the college's first president. It was the first public community college in New York City, and the second in the SUNY system.[4][5][2]

In 1967, FIT faculty and staff won the first higher education union contract in New York State.[6] In the 1970s, FIT received permission from the state legislature to grant bachelor's and master's degrees.[2][7] As a New York State community college, county governments contribute to the tuition costs of residents of those counties attending the school.[8]

Academics

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The 27th Street campus of the Fashion Institute of Technology
The Marvin Feldman Center
Nagler Hall dormitory
The David Dubinsky Student Center

Seventeen majors are offered through the School of Art and Design,[9] and ten through the Jay and Patty Baker School of Business and Technology[10] leading to degrees of Associate of Applied Science, Bachelor of Fine Arts, or Bachelor of Science. The School of Liberal Arts offers a degree program of Bachelor of Science in art history and museum professions and a degree program of Bachelor of Science in film and media.[11] The School of Graduate Studies offers seven programs leading to degrees of Master of Arts, Master of Fine Arts, or Master of Professional Studies.[12]

In addition to the degree programs, FIT offers a wide selection of non-credit courses through the Center for Professional Studies. One of the most popular programs is the "Sew Like a Pro" series, which teaches basic through advanced sewing skills.[13]

FIT is an accredited institutional member of the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools,[14] the National Association of Schools of Art and Design,[15] and the Council for Interior Design Accreditation.[16] FIT publishes research on store branding and store positioning.[17] It is also a part of the Beta Theta Sigma chapter of Phi Theta Kappa, which has been active since 1999.[18]

Campus

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The nine-building campus in the Midtown South neighborhood of Manhattan[19] includes classrooms, television and radio studios, labs, design workshops, and multiple exhibition galleries.

The Conference Center at FIT features the John E. Reeves Great Hall, a space suitable for conferences, fashion shows, lectures, and other events. The campus also has two large theaters: the Haft Auditorium and the Katie Murphy Amphitheatre.

FIT serves more than 7,578 full-time and 2,186 part-time students.[20] Four dormitories, three of which are on campus, serve approximately 2,300 students and offer a variety of accommodations.[21] The George S. and Mariana Kaufman Residence Hall located at 406 West 31st Street—formerly a book bindery factory—was converted into residential apartments, to offer more housing near the campus for FIT students. The campus also has a retail food court/dining hall, a deli and a Starbucks.[22]

Academic facilities

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The Fred P. Pomerantz Art & Design Center (near) and the Shirley Goodman Resource Center (far) straddle the 27th Street entrance to the campus.

The Fred P. Pomerantz Art and Design Center offers facilities for design studies: photography studios with black-and-white darkrooms, painting rooms, a sculpture studio, a printmaking room, a graphics laboratory, display and exhibit design rooms, life-sketching rooms, and a model-making workshop. The Shirley Goodman Resource Center houses the Museum at FIT and the Library/Media Services, with references for history, sociology, technology, art, and literature; international journals and periodicals; sketchbooks and records donated by designers, manufacturers, and merchants; slides, tapes, and periodicals; and a clipping file. The Gladys Marcus Library provides access to books, periodicals, DVDs and non-print materials, and houses Fashion Institute of Technology Special Collections and College Archives.[23][24] FIT also has many computer labs for student use. The Instructional Media Services Department provides audiovisual and TV support and an in-house TV studio. Student work is also displayed throughout the campus. Fashion shows featuring the work of graduating Bachelor of Fine Arts students occur each academic year.

The Design/Research Lighting Laboratory, a development facility for interior design and other academic disciplines, features 400 commercially available lighting fixtures controlled by a computer. The Annette Green/Fragrance Foundation Laboratory is an environment for the study of fragrance development.

Museum at FIT

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The Museum at FIT
Map
Established1969[25]
TypeDesign/Textile Museum[26]
DirectorValerie Steele
Public transit accessNew York City Subway: "1" train at 28th Street
New York City Bus: M5, M7, M20, M23
Websitefitnyc.edu/museum

The Museum at FIT, founded in 1969 as the Design Laboratory, includes collections of clothing, textiles, and accessories.

It began presenting exhibitions in the 1970s, utilizing a collection on long-term loan from the Brooklyn Museum of Art, and then over time acquiring its own collection as well as thousands of textiles and other fashion-related material. In 1993, the Board of Trustees of FIT, noting the significance of the Design Laboratory's collections and exhibitions, changed the institution's name to The Museum at FIT.[27] In 2012, the museum was awarded accreditation by the American Alliance of Museums.

The museum's permanent collection now includes more than 50,000 garments and accessories from the 18th century to the present.[28] Important designers such as Adrian, Balenciaga, Chanel, and Dior are represented. The collecting policy of the museum focuses on aesthetically and historically significant clothing, accessories, textiles and visual materials, with emphasis on contemporary avant-garde fashion.[28]

There are three galleries in the museum. The lower level gallery is devoted to special exhibitions. The Fashion and Textile History Gallery on the main floor features a rotating selection of approximately 200 historically and artistically significant objects from the museum's permanent collection. Gallery FIT, also located on the main floor, is dedicated to student and faculty exhibitions.[29]

Past exhibitions include: London Fashion, which received the first Richard Martin Award for Excellence in Costume Exhibitions from The Costume Society of America, The Corset: Fashioning the Body, and Gothic: Dark Glamour.[28] Other special exhibitions have included Isabel Toledo: Fashion From the Inside Out, in which the inauguration day ensemble Isabel Toledo designed for Michelle Obama in 2008 was on display, and a look at sustainable fashion with Eco-Fashion: Going Green, an exhibition from 2010 examining the past two centuries of fashion's good—and bad—environmental and ethical practices.

More than 100,000 people visit the Museum at FIT each year, attending exhibitions, lectures, and other events. Admission is free to the public.

Fashion historian Valerie Steele became director of the Museum in 2003,[28][30] and has also been named chief curator.[31]

Controversies

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In February 2020, the social media watchdog Diet Prada posted a critique of FIT after a fashion showcase that it alleged was racist.[32][33][34] The show depicted models wearing exaggerated plastic lips and ear accessories.[32] The sole black model in the showcase, Amy LeFevre declined to wear the items upon seeing the accessories, feeling that it entertained a history of racial caricature.[32] The organizer of the controversial segment, Junkai Huang, was a recent MFA graduate from FIT and said that he was not aware of the history,[34] that the paraphernalia was meant to reflect his "own body features and perceptions of their enlarged proportions, which should be celebrated and embraced."[32]

After the social media outcry, FIT President Joyce Brown publicly apologized to LeFevre and the other models, as well as Huang, who she excused from any racist intent.[32][35] She wrote that, instead of Huang,"those in charge of and responsible for overseeing the show failed to recognize or anticipate the racist references and cultural insensitivities that were obvious to almost everybody else."[35][32] She put the head of the graduate school, Amy Brown, and the chair of the fashion design department Jonathan Kyle Farmer on temporary administrative leave during the investigation.[34] FIT students and faculty continued to criticize the school after Brown's apology, feeling that FIT had broader problems with racial discrimination and diversity, and that the administration had waited until a controversy to address the problems with the fashion show.[36] In 2022, FIT opened a center for social justice, a decision it rooted in the 2020 conversations around racism at the school.[37]

In November 2020, Davis was officially terminated from FIT.[38] She sued the college, alleging that Brown's letter had defamed her and made her the scapegoat for the incident.[38] New York State Supreme Court judge Lynn Kotler dismissed Davis's claim, ruling that the letter had not claimed anything untrue about Davis or her conduct.[39] A separate FIT employee, longtime clerical worker Marjorie Phillips—who is black—sued the college in the Southern District of New York (SDNY) for what she claimed was FIT's failure to respond to reports she had made about racist behavior in the graduate school.[36] SDNY magistrate judge Sarah Netburn dismissed Phillips case and ordered that her lawyer pay FIT's attorney fees.[40]

In September 2024, the Brandeis Center and the Anti Defamation League filed a civil rights complaint against FIT.[41] The complaint alleged that Jewish students at FIT were subjected to "severe and pervasive" antisemitic harassment, discrimination, and disparate treatment in violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act.[41] An anonymous Jewish student sued FIT in 2025, alleging that she was wrongly suspended after an incident with an anti-Israel protester during the 2024 protests against the Gaza war.[41][42][43] SDNY judge John P. Cronan dismissed the case in July 2025 on the basis of the plaintiff's insubstantial justification for her anonymity.[44] FIT has stated that it "does not and will not tolerate antisemitism."[41]

Alumni

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Main article: List of Fashion Institute of Technology alumni

Well-known alumni of the school include the fashion designers Norma Kamali,[45][46] Calvin Klein,[47][48] Michael Kors (who did not complete his studies there),[49] interior designer Scott Salvator,[50] actress and comedian Janelle James,[51] actresses Karen Allen and Melissa McCarthy,[52] actress and LGBT advocate Laverne Cox[53] and film director Joel Schumacher.[54]

Notes

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  1. ^ Though it now has bachelor's and master's degree programs, the school is still classified as a community college.

References

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  1. ^ "SUNY Enrollment". State University of New York. Retrieved February 16, 2026.
  2. ^ a b c "Our History". Fashion Institute of Technology. Archived from the original on September 8, 2019. Retrieved January 14, 2016.
  3. ^ "Fashion Institute Plans Advanced". The New York Times. 1944.
  4. ^ "Fashion Institute is Made a College". The New York Times. November 15, 1951. Retrieved April 12, 2026.
  5. ^ Fine, Benjamin (December 2, 1951). "EDUCATION IN REVIEW; Newly Opened Fashion Institute Offers Good Example of State-City-Industry Cooperation". The New York Times. Archived from the original on January 3, 2025. Retrieved April 12, 2026.
  6. ^ "Our History". American Federation of Teachers. July 18, 2014. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved February 23, 2016.
  7. ^ "A Summary of the Actions Taken This Year by the New York State Legislature". The New York Times. June 21, 1979. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved April 12, 2026.
  8. ^ Stern, Gary (December 27, 2021). "Gov. Kathy Hochul called on to declassify FIT as community college, save money for northern counties". The Journal News. Archived from the original on April 13, 2026. Retrieved April 10, 2026.
  9. ^ "FIT School of Art and Design". Fashion Institute of Technology. Archived from the original on December 20, 2015. Retrieved April 17, 2014.
  10. ^ "FIT Jay and Patty Baker School of Business and Technology". fitnyc.edu. Archived from the original on December 19, 2015. Retrieved April 17, 2014.
  11. ^ "School of Liberal Arts". Fashion Institute of Technology. Archived from the original on January 21, 2016. Retrieved January 24, 2016.
  12. ^ "FIT School of Graduate Studies". Fashion Institute of Technology. Archived from the original on December 19, 2015. Retrieved April 17, 2014.
  13. ^ "Noncredit Courses | Fashion Institute of Technology". www.fitnyc.edu. Archived from the original on November 15, 2017. Retrieved November 15, 2017.
  14. ^ "Middle States Commission on Higher Education". www.msche.org. Info724, Ltd. Archived from the original on February 6, 2015. Retrieved January 24, 2016.
  15. ^ "Accredited Institutional Members". nasad.arts-accredit.org. Archived from the original on January 31, 2016. Retrieved January 24, 2016.
  16. ^ "Accredited Programs | CIDA". accredit-id.org. Archived from the original on March 9, 2014. Retrieved January 24, 2016.
  17. ^ Chevalier, Michel (2012). Luxury Brand Management. Singapore: John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 978-1-118-17176-9.
  18. ^ "Chapter Details". Phi Theta Kappa. Archived from the original on July 27, 2024. Retrieved September 27, 2024.
  19. ^ Environmental Assessment Statement: 299 Seventh Avenue, New York City (prepared for NYC Board of Standards and Appeals). Environmental Project Data Statements Co. December 15, 2005. p. 19. Archived from the original on October 12, 2018. Retrieved October 11, 2018. The project site is located in Manhattan's Midtown South neighborhood, and the 400-foot radius area around the property is predominantly characterized by large, bulky, older loft buildings that are occupIed by commercial or residential uses, and by buildings associated with the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT).
  20. ^ "Fashion Institute of Technology—Enrollment Data publisher". Archived from the original on June 7, 2020. Retrieved January 14, 2016.
  21. ^ "FIT Residential Life Homepage". Archived from the original on April 4, 2007.
  22. ^ "Welcome to CampusDish at the Fashion Institute of Technology!". Campusdish.com. Archived from the original on April 3, 2014. Retrieved April 17, 2014.
  23. ^ Mzezewa, Tariro (2018). "Fashion Institute of Technology's Library Gets a Makeover". The New York Times. Archived from the original on February 8, 2018. Retrieved February 9, 2018.
  24. ^ "Gladys Marcus Library". fitnyc.edu. Archived from the original on January 21, 2016. Retrieved January 14, 2016.
  25. ^ "History of the Museum" Archived July 18, 2011, at the Wayback Machine on the FIT website
  26. ^ "About the Museum" Archived April 19, 2014, at the Wayback Machine on the FIT website
  27. ^ Steele, Valerie, Suzy Menkes, Fred Dennis, Robert Nippoldt, N.Y.) Fashion Institute of Technology (New York, and Museum. 2012. Fashion designers: the collection of the Museum at FIT. Köln; London: Taschen.
  28. ^ a b c d "The Freud of Fashion". The New York Times. February 10, 2012. Archived from the original on May 22, 2022. Retrieved January 11, 2013.
  29. ^ "About the Museum". fitnyc.edu. Archived from the original on April 19, 2014. Retrieved April 17, 2014.
  30. ^ Karimzadeh, Marc (February 7, 2014). "The Couture Council to Honor Carolina Herrera". WWD. Archived from the original on February 26, 2014. Retrieved February 7, 2014.
  31. ^ "Valerie Steele Fashion » Biography". valeriesteelefashion.com. Archived from the original on May 31, 2019. Retrieved March 8, 2016.
  32. ^ a b c d e f Asmelash, Leah (February 23, 2020). "Fashion Institute of Technology apologizes after fashion show evokes controversy over racist imagery". CNN. Retrieved April 14, 2026.
  33. ^ Milman, Oliver (February 20, 2020). "New York fashion college apologizes for runway show criticised as 'clearly racist'". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved April 14, 2026.
  34. ^ a b c Freytas-Tamura, Kimiko de (February 23, 2020). "F.I.T. Model Refuses to Wear 'Clearly Racist' Accessories". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on November 16, 2024. Retrieved April 14, 2026.
  35. ^ a b Brown, Joyce (February 22, 2020). "An Official Message from President Brown". FIT Newsroom. Archived from the original on May 9, 2026. Retrieved April 14, 2026.
  36. ^ a b Freytas-Tamura, Kimiko de (March 16, 2020). "Upheaval at Fashion Institute Over Accusations of Racism". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on November 1, 2024. Retrieved April 14, 2026.
  37. ^ Weissman, Sara. "Fashion Misstep Leads to New Social Justice Center". Inside Higher Ed. Archived from the original on July 22, 2025. Retrieved April 14, 2026.
  38. ^ a b Sundar, Sindhu (July 20, 2021). "Former FIT Grad School Dean Doubles Down On Defamation Claims". WWD. Retrieved April 14, 2026.
  39. ^ "Davis v Brown". Justia Law. Retrieved April 14, 2026.
  40. ^ "Phillips v. Fashion Institute of Technology et al, No. 1:2020cv00221 - Document 164 (S.D.N.Y. 2024)". Justia Law. Retrieved April 14, 2026.
  41. ^ a b c d Bandler, Aaron (6 November 2025). Ed Dept to investigate complaint against NY fashion school over Jew-hatred, says Brandeis Center Archived December 21, 2025, at the Wayback Machine Jewish National Syndicate. Retrieved on 18 December 2025
  42. ^ Pierre, Dion (November 7, 2025). "Brandeis Center Seeks Anonymity for Jewish Victim in Antisemitism Lawsuit". Algemeiner.com. Archived from the original on November 7, 2025. Retrieved April 14, 2026.
  43. ^ Culhane, Mallory (February 5, 2025). "Jewish FIT Student Can Remain Anonymous for Now in Bias Lawsuit". Bloomberg Law.
  44. ^ Volokh, Eugene (July 11, 2025). "No Pseudonymity for Plaintiff Suing Fashion Institute of Technology Over Alleged Anti-Semitic Discrimination". Reason.com. Archived from the original on March 10, 2026. Retrieved April 14, 2026.
  45. ^ Jackson, Kenneth, ed. 1995. "Fashion Institute of Technology". In The Encyclopedia of New York City, 392–393. Yale University Press.
  46. ^ "Norma Kamali Fashion Designer | Norma Kamali Biography, Information, Videos, News and the Latest Runway Collections". 2016. Accessed January 24. http://fashion.infomat.com/norma-kamali-designer.html Archived October 11, 2016, at the Wayback Machine.
  47. ^ "Alumni of FIT < Fashion Institute of Technology". catalog.fitnyc.edu.
  48. ^ CFDA Member Profile: Calvin Klein[dead link]. Council of Fashion Designers of America.
  49. ^ William Alden (February 4, 2014). "Michael Kors Is Now a Billionaire" Archived January 24, 2018, at the Wayback Machine. Dealbook. The New York Times. Accessed September 2015.
  50. ^ Dellatore, Carl (October 11, 2016). Interior Design Master Class100 Lessons from America's Finest Designers on the Art of Decoration. New York: Rizzoli. p. cover, 54, 55. ISBN 978-0-8478-4890-4.
  51. ^ "Janelle James on Refusing to Disclose Her Age, Hoping 'Abbott Elementary' Doesn't Last Forever and Why She's Not Interested in 'Sexy' Roles". April 19, 2023. Archived from the original on February 26, 2024. Retrieved April 7, 2024.
  52. ^ "Albany Film Festival spotlight: Karen Allen". March 17, 2022.
  53. ^ "An FIT Guide to Binge-Watching". April 23, 2020. Archived from the original on April 25, 2024. Retrieved April 25, 2024.
  54. ^ Joel Schumacher Biography Archived January 18, 2012, at the Wayback Machine. Yahoo! Movies.
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