Ralph Lauren Corporation ITM Scholarships Awarded

Emily Bunch, Ana Dimas, and Destinee Smiling have been selected as co-recipients of the academic year 2025 Ralph Lauren Corp. ITM Scholarships. They were recognized for their hard work and tenacity in overcoming challenges to reach their goals as well as international business orientation.

Emily Bunch

emily bunchEmily Bunch is currently brand representative at Hollister, where she generated more than $2,000 of online sales in one day, enrolled more than 5,000 customers in its loyalty program to boost repeat business and increase customer reviews, trained more than 10 new employees, led teams in pushing new product in creative ways, timely resolved point of sale technology issues to promote sales, and more. She concurrently serves as sales associate and stock associate at Athleta and sales associate at RaceFaster. Bunch was a design operations intern at New Era Cap, where she learned about brand protection through hands-on lessons relating to counterfeits.

As a member of FIT’s Presidential Scholars Program, Bunch has excelled in her academics and is augmenting her ITM major with minors in English and Women’s and Gender Studies. She tutors ITM and Production Management students in FIT’s Academic Skills Tutoring Center.

Bunch ran in Walt Disney World’s Marathon Weekend for team Give Kids the World, raising close to $1,000 for this organization devoted to giving vacations to critically ill children and their families. Next year, she aims to raise $5,000.  She has also raised funds for Miles for Smiles, The Lupus Foundation, as well as her local Boys and Girls Club.  

After performing several projects on Patagonia’s climate change initiatives, Emily has developed an intense interest in sustainability.  Inspired by how “people’s small ideas can end up having a huge impact on lessening a large companies footprint, and how important it is just to try”, she hopes to work with a company who shares similar values with her.

Ana Dimas

ana dimasAna Dimas worked as a global sourcing and assistant fashion designer at Chevignon and fashion designer at Mix Blue, both in Colombia. In these past roles, she worked with international product development teams, assisted with material sourcing, and closely communicated with import/export department and warehouse teams.

In addition to her ITM major coursework, Dimas is pursuing minors in Economics, Latin American Studies, and Ethics & Sustainability.  Aiming to create a positive sustainability impact to move the fashion industry forward, she has affirmed ITM’s role in her ability to evaluate the industry’s challenges while deep diving into constant economic, political, and social changes to reach nuanced solutions and conclusions.

Dimas has volunteered at a number of ITM events, including Designed to Deliver: The 2023 International Trade & Marketing Forum, Talking Trade @FIT WITA Academy Pathways to Opportunity, the 2023 Apparel Importers Trade & Transportation Conference, and the field trip to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. She also led a team of supporters at ITM’s The Changing Trade Flows for Apparel event.

To achieve her highest career goal of creating her own apparel sourcing firm, Dimas intends to build strong relationships with suppliers and businesses who are committed to supporting sustainable sourcing and manufacturing, fortify her involvement with the International Trade Student Association and the Ethics & Sustainability Club, as well as seek additional networking and professional development opportunities. She is seeking an internship to gain hands-on experience and strengthen her communication, critical thinking, leadership, team player, and strategic management skills. 

Dimas further plans to augment her studies with a Master of Professional Studies degree in Global Fashion Management and become a teacher.

Destinee Smiling

destinee smilingDestinee Smiling is a benefits advisor for Mutual of Omaha, having earned a life, health, and annuities license and where she strives to drive her clients’ insurance literacy.  She was also a data entry specialist for the State Attorney’s Office 13th Circuit.

Enjoying the act of giving back, which has given Smiling drive and purpose, she has helped homebound elderly residents by supplying them with food through the New York Cares - Seward Park Extension, Tenants Association. She also taught elementary students the importance of fashion by volunteering at The Museum at FIT's Elementary School Program. She assisted children as they created mood boards and collages for inspiration, developed an interest in fashion, and crafted memorable creations. Smiling was lauded by MFIT's assistant curator for her excellent organizational skills, attention to detail and adaptive behavior, as well as commitment to education, service, and personal growth.

In the next five to ten years in international trade, Smiling aspires to drive her passion for global commerce and diverse cultures in a dynamic and impactful role. To do so, she intends to earn her customs broker license within the next two years and become a global sourcing buyer as part of an environmentally friendly supply chain. On her way to achieving her ultimate career objective, Smiling plans to become a multifaceted expert adept in customs regulations and global sourcing strategies, negotiating favorable terms for her clients, and balancing financial factors with compliance obligations.

Selection Committee

The selection committee was comprised of Doris Amor, Head of Early Career & Lifecycle Operations at Ralph Lauren Corp.; David Uricoli, President of Uricoli Consulting Inc.; and Joanne Krakowski (ITM '07), Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Māt and Remedy Denim.