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By Kenya Godette

Nariyah Moore, a biological sciences major at Old Dominion University, knows making a good impression on a potential employer starts with dressing the part. But for a college student, professional attire often comes with a significant price tag.

That’s why Moore and her colleagues in Enactus — a student organization that uses entrepreneurship principles to address social and environmental challenges — launched the Monarch Professional Attire and Wardrobe (PAW) initiative, a Monarch Internship and Co-op Office (MICO) program that offers free, career-specific clothing for students.

“We want to make sure students have one less thing to worry about when preparing for their career opportunities,” she said.

Moore explained that ����������’s PAW program goes beyond the usual suits, ties and blazers. Alongside traditional business attire, students can find unique, industry-specific gear like construction vests, lab coats, goggles and even essentials like badge clips and padfolios. She hopes to eventually expand the selection to include steel-toed boots and a goggle cleaning station — making it easier and more accessible for students to step confidently into any career setting.

Moore explained that ����������’s PAW program goes beyond the usual suits, ties and blazers. Alongside traditional business attire, students can find unique, industry-specific gear like construction vests, lab coats, goggles and even essentials like badge clips and padfolios.

Now, those plans are becoming a reality.

Thanks to a $50,000 cash infusion from the MICO, the PAW initiative has the needed support to build inventory and expand from a pop-up store in The Monarch Way to a larger space. The funds are allocated from a $150,000 State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) Capacity-Building Grant the office received last year.

Saige Hill ‘15  (MPA ‘18, Ph.D. ‘23), assistant director for the internship office and faculty advisor for Enactus, is encouraged by the program’s continued progress. Before Monarch PAW, Dr. Hill oversaw the Monarch Clothing Closet — a similar program for a mix of casual and professional clothing — and received an influx of workwear donations with no proper space store or display them. Realizing a need to separate the clothing into two distinct closets, the PAW program was born.

The move not only fills a student need but also advances the mission of the internship office: preparing students for jobs.

Dr. Hill works throughout the year to ready students for the interview process, fine-tune their resumes and cover letters and strengthen industry partnerships to effectively place students in internships. She views the PAW program as an extension of that and a means to holistically approach career-readiness.

When asked why students should consider using the PAW program, Moore said, “It’s free. You spend nothing when looking for items at PAW. If you need to bring it back for any reason, we’re more than happy to help you find something that suits your needs.”

Dr. Hill emphasized that all clothing and accessory donations in the PAW closet undergo a strict quality-check and is cleaned, ironed and ready to wear. Some of their inventory is brand new and “right out of the package.”

Moore agrees, saying she has used PAW to find clothes for professional development and career opportunities. She noted that since students don’t regularly wear career attire, “this is a great service for students who are unable to spend hundreds of dollars on professional clothing.”

According to Dr. Hill, the Monarch PAW’s permanent location is slated to open this summer and will be seeking donations, specifically lightly worn shoes, plus sizes and big and tall menswear. Accessories like jewelry, watches and brand-new hosiery are also welcomed.

For now, the program will continue to operate out of The Monarch Way Monday-Friday, 12-5 p.m. Inquiries can be made by phone at 757-683-5627 and by email at internship@odu.edu.