Apparel Program Partners With Walmart to Create Mentoring Circle for Bumpers Students

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The Mentoring Circle includes (front, L to R) Walmart's Ricci Grimes, students India Callahan, Ellie Williams and Kelsey Cundith, and Walmart's Kathryn Miller; and (back, L to R) students Carly Sandidge, Kelsey Casey, Jessica Fuentes and Gabby Wisson. Not pictured: Lauren Fritsche.

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The apparel merchandising and product development program at the University of Arkansas has partnered with Walmart corporate executives to create a Mentoring Circle to help students develop professional and leadership skills.

Ricci Grimes, senior director of Walmart's Ladies Product Development, and Kathryn Miller, director of Jewelry and Accessories Product Development and a graduate of the U of A apparel program, are leading the monthly meetings, which run through the academic year.

Eight students from the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences' apparel program were selected by faculty members based on written applications and grade point averages. The group includes India Callahan of Dumas; Kelsey Casey and Kelsey Cundith, both from Overland Park, Kansas; Jessica Fuentes from Keller, Texas; Lauren Fritsche of Fort Smith; Carly Sandidge from Maumelle; Ellie Williams from Sprindgale; and Gabby Wisson of Colleyville, Texas.

"As a graduate of the AMPD program, and as a member of the AMPD Advisory Board, I am personally invested in developing these students as future leaders and equipping them for corporate apparel retail careers," said Miller. "I have benefited greatly from my educational experience in this program, and now years later, am honored to have this opportunity to pay it forward. This program not only offers students exposure to the apparel industry from a real world perspective, but also provides networking opportunities with Walmart leadership that could lead to career opportunities. I wish I would have had this kind of exposure when I was a student. I am excited to be a part of this project and invest in these students' success."

The Mentoring Circle is primarily for sophomores and juniors with business minors and who have interests in Walmart, the apparel industry and business operations.

"This is such a great opportunity," said Kathy Smith, clinical associate professor of apparel merchandising and product development in the Bumpers College's School of Human Environmental Sciences. "Our students will be able to connect with industry executives on a professional, yet personal level."

"It is amazing we are able to learn from professional, successful women," said Williams. "We are lucky to have resources so close to help develop our careers. Too often, women view colleagues as competition. This mentor program promotes the idea that as women, the goal is to help each other get to the winner's circle together."

Session topics include resume building, interviewing skills, executive presence and presentation skills, as well as introductions to Walmart culture such as an overview of the company focused on apparel and roles within the company.

"The Mentoring Circle has helped me improve my interviewing skills as well as my resume, and get interviews with major companies," said Casey. "It helps us gain confidence in our careers as well as our personal lives. It's a great way for students to get a glimpse of the real world and get better prepared for our future."

Students also have opportunities for job shadowing, store tours and walk-throughs, shopping the competition and visits with special guests.

"This past spring, I was asked to participate in a Walmart Women's Program called BOLD - Building Opportunities through Leadership Development," said Grimes. "The class focused on Women and Leadership. At the end, we were given a pay it forward project as a medium of empowerment because both those who drive the project and those impacted as participants are benefited. Helping others develop is a key component of successful leadership. We were given several options for our project, but after visiting the U of A apparel merchandising and product development program last year, I wanted to pay it forward by focusing on attracting female talent to Walmart."

"This is very beneficial to the apparel program," said Williams. "The eight of us will be able to take what we learn and help our peers by paying it forward. We have a stellar apparel program and I think this will give us more recognition in the corporate world."

About the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences: Bumpers College provides life-changing opportunities to position and prepare graduates who will be leaders in the businesses associated with foods, family, the environment, agriculture, sustainability and human quality of life; and who will be first-choice candidates of employers looking for leaders, innovators, policy makers and entrepreneurs. The college is named for Dale Bumpers, former Arkansas governor and longtime U.S. senator who made the state prominent in national and international agriculture.

About the University of Arkansas: The University of Arkansas provides an internationally competitive education for undergraduate and graduate students in more than 200 academic programs. The university contributes new knowledge, economic development, basic and applied research, and creative activity while also providing service to academic and professional disciplines. The Carnegie Foundation classifies the University of Arkansas among only 2 percent of universities in America that have the highest level of research activity. U.S. News & World Report ranks the University of Arkansas among its top American public research universities. Founded in 1871, the University of Arkansas comprises 10 colleges and schools and maintains a low student-to-faculty ratio that promotes personal attention and close mentoring.