Sustainable Style

Ava Stanley ’25 wants the fashion industry to be part of the solution, not part of the problem.

Ava Stanley ’25 wasn’t interested in URI.

Stanley, originally from Hicksville, N.Y., on Long Island, wanted to expand her geographical horizons and head south for college. But an email from URI about the application deadline shifted her sights a bit northeast, and she decided to apply. “Why not?” she thought at the time.

She started talking to people she knew who were attending URI, and they told her how much they loved it. So, when she got a phone call from Dean Libutti, associate vice president for enrollment management and student success, telling her she’d been awarded a Verrecchia Scholarship, her decision was made.

Initially, Stanley had planned to major in marketing but gradually realized that wasn’t the right path for her. She changed her major to textiles, fashion merchandising, and design, with a minor in sustainability. Stanley found a kindred spirit—and an academic inspiration—when she enrolled in a course taught by Izabela Ciesielska-Wrobel, assistant professor of textiles, fashion merchandising, and design.

“Professor Ciesielska-Wrobel is interested in environmental waste and plastics leaching into the ocean,” says Stanley. “I wrote my application essay for URI on sustainability in the fashion industry, so immediately I thought this might be a good connection.”

For her part, Ciesielska-Wrobel saw something special in Stanley, as well. “I immediately recognized her inquisitive mind; she was always present, engaged, and asking interesting questions,” says Ciesielska-Wrobel. “My impression was that she was particularly interested in fashion and various aspects of sustainability.”

During the spring 2024 semester, Stanley enrolled in an independent study with Ciesielska-Wrobel, working on ocean plastic waste and converting that waste into filaments that could become fibers for textiles. Stanley “flourished as a young researcher,” says Ciesielska-Wrobel.

Stanley incorporated the independent study in her entry for the annual Spring Splash fashion show. She made a three-tiered denim dress in which the curves of the denim skirt resembled ocean waves. “I draped green lace on the arms and around the waist to symbolize ocean waste disrupting the natural beauty of the ocean,” she says. “Some people saw the lace as seaweed flowing in the waves. I see it as representing the idea that ocean waste has become so normalized, it is now part of the ocean and blends in.”

Her “favorite opportunity” as a Verrecchia Scholar has been getting the chance to talk with Alfred J. Verrecchia ’67, M.B.A. ’72, Hon. ’04, and his wife, Geraldine Verrecchia, because of their knowledge about the business world and their “truly one-of-a-kind” life experiences.

“The Verrecchia Scholarship has shown me that hard work does not go unnoticed. Being awarded such an incredible scholarship made all the long nights of studying and extracurriculars worth it,” says Stanley, who plans to spend the spring 2025 semester studying design at Parsons Paris, an American art and design school in Paris. “The Verrecchias have been huge role models for me. Their generosity and humility are inspiring, and I hope I can have an impact as great as theirs.”

—Gary E. Frank

PHOTO: SETH JACOBSON