The Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising (FIDM) is a

private college Private universities and private colleges are higher education institutions not operated, owned, or institutionally funded by governments. However, they often receive tax breaks, public student loans, and government grants. Depending on the count ...

in downtown

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. The college was founded in 1969 by Tonian Hohberg, the institute's president and CEO. In 2023, Arizona State University (ASU) announced that the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in downtown Los Angeles will be part of the expansion of ASU's fashion education program, which will now be named ASU FIDM, and will operate in both Los Angeles, California, and

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona. With over 1.6 million residents at the 2020 census, it is the ...

Academics

The college offers 26

associate degree An associate degree or associate's degree is an undergraduate degree awarded after a course of post-secondary study lasting two to three years. It is a level of academic qualification above a high school diploma and below a bachelor's degree ...

programs; a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...

degree in

business management Business administration is the administration of a commercial enterprise. It includes all aspects of overseeing and supervising the business operations of an organization. Overview The administration of a business includes the performance o ...

, which is also available via

distance learning Distance education, also known as distance learning, is the education of students who may not always be physically present at school, or where the learner and the teacher are separated in both time and distance; today, it usually involves online ...

; and nine

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

degree programs. The college also offers a master's in business administration degree. The college is accredited by the

WASC Senior College and University Commission The Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC ( )) provided accreditation of public and private universities, colleges, secondary and elementary schools in California and Hawaii, the territories of Guam, American Samoa and Northern ...

. Due to a commission review finding problems in sustainability and faculty oversight in 2019, status has changed from "Accredited" to "Accredited with Notice of Concern". It is also an accredited institutional member of the

National Association of Schools of Art and Design The National Association of Schools of Art and Design (NASAD), founded in 1944, is an accrediting organization of colleges, schools and universities in the United States. The organization establishes standards for graduate and undergraduate degrees ...

(NASAD).Accredited Institutional Members
. National Association of Schools of Art and Design. Accessed 2014.

Campuses

In addition to its Los Angeles campus, the college previously had three satellite campuses located in San Francisco, Orange County, and San Diego. The main campus is the Los Angeles campus. The campus features the modern architecture of Clive Wilkinson, innovative study spaces, a design studio, and the FIDM Museum and Galleries. The San Francisco campus was located in Union Square. The Orange County Campus had lofts, an indoor/outdoor student lounge, bright colors, and a unique audiovisual igloo.

In popular culture

FIDM served as the location of Lifetime's ''

Project Runway ''Project Runway'' is an American reality television series that premiered on Bravo on December 1, 2004. The series focuses on fashion design. It was created by Eli Holzman and was hosted by Heidi Klum from 2004 to 2017. It has a varied airi ...

'' season six, '' Project Runway: Under the Gunn'', '' Project Runway: Threads'', and '' Project Runway: Junior''. Several FIDM alumni, including Santino Rice, Daniel Franco, Guadalupe Vidal, Kelli Martin, and Leann Marshall, were contestants on the original ''Project Runway'' show. FIDM was also featured in the MTV show '' The Hills'', which shows the life of upcoming fashion designer, Lauren Conrad, who comes from

Laguna Beach Laguna Beach (; ''Laguna'', Spanish for "Lagoon") is a city in Orange County, California, United States. Located in Southern California along the Pacific Ocean, this seaside resort city has a mild year-round climate, scenic coves, and environ ...

and wants to become famous for her designs.

FIDM Museum

The Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising Museum] located at the Los Angeles Campus, is home to a large collection of fashion and costume pieces from the 1800s to today. The museum features permanent and temporary exhibits, including costumes and designs from early 20th-century Hollywood, theater, and current television shows and films. The FIDM Museum Permanent Collection features more than 15,000 objects representing over 200 years of fashion, spanning haute couture, ready-to-wear, international ensembles, film costumes, and fragrance. Highlights of the collection include the Lilli Ann, Michael Arnaud, Damask Cecil Beaton, Nancy Dinsmore,

Rudi Gernreich Rudolf "Rudi" Gernreich (August 8, 1922 April 21, 1985) was an Austrian people, Austrian-born American fashion designer whose avant-garde clothing designs are generally regarded as the most innovative and dynamic fashion of the 1960s. He purposef ...

, Stella Hanania, Helen Larson, Tina Leser, Maurice Levin, and

Gianni Versace Giovanni Maria "Gianni" Versace (; 2 December 1946 – 15 July 1997) was an Italian fashion designer, socialite and businessman. He was the founder of Versace, an international luxury-fashion house that produces accessories, fragrances, make-up ...

Menswear archives.

Notable people

Alumni

Princess Rajwa Al Hussein Princess Rajwa Al Hussein (; born Rajwa Al Saif; 28 April 1994) is a Saudi member of the Jordanian royal family. She is married to Hussein, Crown Prince of Jordan, heir apparent to the Jordanian throne. The couple's engagement was announced ...

, Saudi architect and the wife of Hussein, Crown Prince of Jordan * Marina Toybina, costume designer * Lubov Azria, fashion designer * Katie Bender Wynn, filmmaker * Gessica Brooke, fashion and accessories designer *

Amanda Bynes Amanda Laura Bynes (born April 3, 1986) is an American actress. Bynes began her career as a child actor, appearing on the Nickelodeon sketch comedy series '' All That'' (1996–2000) and its spin-off series '' The Amanda Show'' (1999–2002). ...

, fashion designer, actress *

Lauren Conrad Lauren Katherine Conrad (born February 1, 1986) is an American television personality, fashion designer and author. In late 2004, she came to prominence after being cast in the reality television series '' Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County'', ...

, author and fashion designer * Cris Crotz,

Miss Nevada The Miss Nevada competition is the pageant that selects the representative for the state of Nevada in the Miss America competition, and the name of the title held by that winner. The first Nevadan to compete at Miss America was Carol Lampe in 1 ...

2010 * Candice Cuoco, fashion designer, ''Project Runway 14'' finalist * Kyra Davis, novelist *

Lil Debbie Jordan Mary Capozzi (born February 2, 1990), better known by her stage name Lil Debbie, is an American rapper, model, baker and fashion designer. Debbie started her career in 2011 as part of the now-defunct group White Girl Mob, with rappers Kre ...

, rapper, model, and fashion designer *

Nikita Dragun Nikita Nguyen (born January 31, 1996), known professionally as Nikita Dragun, is an American internet personality, YouTuber, make-up artist, and model. Early life and education Nguyen was born on January 31, 1996 in Belgium and raised in Sprin ...

, Beauty YouTuber * Rhonda Harper, surfer and surf coach * Mario Hollands, pitcher for the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. The Phillies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. Since 2004, the team's home stadium has ...

* Sassa Jimenez, fashion designer, Philippines * Karen Kane, fashion designer *

Lisa Kristine Lisa Kristine (born September 2, 1965) is an American humanitarian photographer, activist, and speaker. Her photography has documented indigenous cultures and social causes, such as modern slavery, in more than 100 countries. Through her work, ...

, fine art photographer * Michael Kuluva, fashion designer, professional figure skater, owner of Tumbler and Tipsy *

Masiela Lusha Masiela Lusha (; born October 23, 1985) is an Albanian-born American actress and author. She gained recognition for playing Carmen Lopez on the globally syndicated ABC sitcom '' George Lopez'', a role that earned her two consecutive Young Art ...

, Albanian-American actress, poet, and humanitarian * Leanne Marshall, fashion designer, ''Project Runway'' 5 winner * Thai Nguyen, fashion designer and television personality *

Trish Summerville Trish Summerville is an American costume designer. She is best known for her work on Francis Lawrence's dystopian science fiction film '' The Hunger Games: Catching Fire'' (2013), as well as her collaborations with David Fincher including his ps ...

, costume designer *

Santino Rice Santino Quinto Rice (born August 20, 1974) is an American fashion designer and television personality. He is best known for his appearances on the reality television programs ''Project Runway'', ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' and '' On the Road with Aus ...

, fashion designer, ''Project Runway'' 2 finalist *

Yotam Solomon Yotam Solomon (; born March 28, 1987) is a Los Angeles–based, Israeli-born fashion designer. Biography Personal life Solomon's grandparents migrated from Austria and Hungary to Israel after the Holocaust. A son of Israeli-born parents, Yot ...

, fashion designer * Marlene Stewart, costume designer * Edwin Bodney, poet *

Gottmik Kade Gottlieb (born August 19, 1996), better known as Gottmik, is an American Drag (clothing), drag performer and make-up artist. Gottmik was the first trans man to compete on ''RuPaul's Drag Race'', coming in shared 3rd/4th place on the RuPaul's ...

, drag performer, make-up artist *

Samantha Richelle Samantha Richelle (born 16 December 1988) is a Brunei-born Filipina actress, entrepreneur, and fashion designer. She is also the daughter of Prince Jefri Bolkiah, the youngest son of Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddien III. Acting career In 2020, Rich ...

, actress and fashion designer

Faculty and staff

Kevin Reagan Kevin Reagan is a three-time Grammy Award-winning graphic designer/art director, also honored by the AIGA, ''Print'', and ''Communication Arts''. He has created artwork for critically and commercially acclaimed albums by Madonna, The Foo Figh ...

, graphic designer and author *

Bradford Shellhammer Bradford Shane Shellhammer (born 1976) is an American entrepreneur, designer, and tech executive who co-founded the e-commerce companies Fab and Bezar and the blog Queerty. Shellhammer was an admissions counselor at Fashion Institute of Design ...

, entrepreneur and designer, founding editor of ''

Queerty ''Queerty'' is an online magazine and newspaper covering gay- and LGBTQ-oriented entertainment and news, founded in 2005 by David Hauslaib. As of June 2015, the site had more than five million monthly unique visitors. History ''Queerty'' was ...

'' *

Nick Verreos Nick Verreos (born February 13, 1967, in St. Louis, Missouri) is an American fashion designer, fashion commentator, former ''Project Runway'' contestant, educator and author. Early life and education Verreos was born in Missouri on February 13, ...

, fashion designer

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising Fashion schools in the United States Business schools in California For-profit universities and colleges in the United States Universities and colleges in Los Angeles Universities and colleges in Orange County, California Universities and colleges in San Diego Universities and colleges in San Francisco Schools accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges California people in fashion Private universities and colleges in California 1969 establishments in California Educational institutions established in 1969