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Senior Barbara Gubner (Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y.) made her mark in the fast-paced fashion industry recently.
Gubner worked closely with Marc Isenhart, women’s public relations coordinator at The Donna Karan Company, to select runway looks for stylists, publicists, and editors; monitor the status of ready-to-wear runway samples; track advertisements for DKNY versus competitive brands in major women’s magazines; and assist in the photography layout for Accessory Spring Look Book.
“I decided to do an internship to make connections and to break into the fashion industry,” says Gubner, a double major in government & law and art history. “I had the opportunity to experience an entry-level public relations position this summer and see if that’s really what I want to do. I also got to see all aspects of the design process and actually see the area where Donna Karan works.”
Gubner met celebrities like Jennifer Love Hewitt and Moby, but says the highlight of her internship was selecting outfits for the MTV Music Awards. After the show, she drafted press releases on selected Donna Karan looks.
“I enjoyed the internship because I was able to experience aspects of the business that I could never obtain in a classroom setting,” says Gubner. “Lafayette allows New York City internships for credit, which I think is advantageous.”
For Gubner, the most challenging aspect of the internship was the long hours. “I worked every day from 9 a.m.-6 p.m. and went to events at night and on weekends,” she says. “You have to be enthusiastic every day and get involved. It helped that I was really interested in this.”
“Lafayette is an amazing place for a liberal arts education,” says Gubner. “You can determine the field you would like to focus on.”
A member of the lacrosse team, Gubner serves as an admissions panelist speaker. She studied in Florence, Italy, and is a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority.