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Recent graduate Sarah Deitsch ’03 was featured on CNN’s “Dollar Signs,” a half-hour program devoted to consumer financial topics, on Aug. 23.
Covering “what young adults need to know in their first job,” the piece spotlights how recent college graduates are coping with being on their own, especially in regard to financial and money-management challenges.
Leading off the program, Deitsch discussed her expenses, spending habits, savings, financial strategy, and related issues. A financial expert analyzed her answers and talked about ways she can save more money.
Interviewed at her home in Norwood, N.J., Deitsch is working in the Consumer Relations and Sales department at Giorgio Armani’s only corporate office in the United States, located in Manhattan. She graduated as a double major in art and American Studies in May.
Wendy Furrer ’94, an International Affairs graduate working in CNN’s New York bureau, served as producer of the segment.
“Lafayette has helped prepare me for the future in many ways,” says Deitsch. “Through various internships and externships and a strong liberal arts education in art and American Studies, I have the skills necessary for the next level after college. The writing I learned helps me every day with different reports. I also developed important skills at Lafayette by giving presentations and communicating my ideas to people.”
Deitsch is in charge of suits, tuxedos, and various other high-end clothing in the men’s clothing department of Armani.
“It is my job to interact and communicate with the buyers at the major department stores that carry Giorgio Armani, such as Bloomingdale’s, Nordstrom’s, and Saks Fifth Avenue,” she says.
She also works with the salespeople in the Armani New York office to find out clothing availability and handles ordering. She assists with the eight two-week-long shows in the office to display new seasonal lines and interacts with buyers and salespeople from the Italy headquarters.
“Everything’s been going very well,” she says. “I have a great boss and have become friends with the other girls I work with. I’m learning a lot. I love being in New York City and the atmosphere of this whole place.”
Deitch spent last summer interning at the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (Grammy Awards) in New York City under executive director Jon Marcus ’70. During a 12-week stint at the company, some of her responsibilities included compiling newsletters, recruiting members, and participating in event management. She was able to get a taste of marketing and public relations as well, she says.
During her sophomore year, Deitsch completed an alumni internship with Michael Weisburger ’82 at Weisburger Insurance, the company his father, Trustee emeritus Mark B. Weisburger ’55, founded.
“Michael knew I was interested in marketing and advertising, so he [even] flew me to Cleveland to work with their publishing company for a weekend,” says Deitsch. “He also was a major factor in my job search this year as he introduced me to many networking contacts in different fields.”
Deitsch also had an externship at Weber Shandwick, a public relations firm, during an interim session between semesters.
In the interim session of her junior year, Deitsch traveled to New Zealand to take a special Lafayette course entitled “New Zealand: Humans in the Landscape in the Southwest Pacific,” taught by Susan Niles, professor of anthropology, and Ralph Slaght, James Renwick Hogg Professor of Philosophy.
The course included extensive backpacking, walking, and hiking in the backcountry. Deitsch and her classmates studied the interplay of the physical and social landscape of New Zealand and investigated how physical forces have shaped the nation’s settlement by the Maori and by Europeans. They examined the settlers’ economic motivations — including whaling, gold mining, and sheep herding — and concluded with a study of contemporary concerns, including multiculturalism, the impact of tourism, and the importance of forging an international identity premised on “green” politics.
During the fall semester of her final year at Lafayette, Deitsch completed a senior research seminar in American Studies, in which she wrote a 100-plus page paper detailing the history of album covers and debating whether they should be considered works of art. In the spring, she collaborated with Curlee Holton, associate professor of art and director of Lafayette’s Experimental Printmaking Institute, to create a retrospective on the work and career of noted African-American artist Paul Keene (see related story).
“Our work included a review of his paintings, drawings, and prints with an accompanying essay,” says Deitsch, one of five Lafayette students named to the Patriot League Volleyball Academic Honor Roll.
Deitsch completed interviews with the artist and a major collector and prepared an exhibit proposal, budget, schedule, and promotional packet. She also researched and documented Keene’s career and compiled a catalog for the exhibition.
“I liked how American Studies helped my writing skills while giving me a lot of knowledge about many different disciplines of popular culture,” she adds. “Also, I have a strong interest in art, and I feel that my art history major [fulfilled] this interest.”
Vice president of finance and vice president of communication for Delta Gamma sorority while at Lafayette, Deitsch hopes to stay with Giorgio Armani indefinitely and may want to move to the public relations or marketing department in the future.