In the spring of 2018, Laura Bunyan, a UConn sociology professor at the Stamford campus, started Dress for Success, an annual event allowing students to borrow formal wear they couldn’t afford. Now, almost six years later, Bunyan has grown the event. What once only offered formal wear is now Husky Clothing for All, a year-round clothing pantry that gives students who can’t afford it access to all types of clothing.
Inside of the old gymnasium at the heart of UConn Stamford’s campus, students will be able to find Husky Clothing For All operating Mondays through Thursdays. In its infancy only formal clothing would have been offered, but over the years it has expanded to include sweaters, jeans, T-shirts and other types of clothing.
Bunyan’s goal is to foster an environment where students are able to utilize the opportunities that are available to them.
“Students need support, and we all need access to information, and part of being successful in college is having information about resources that are available to students,” Bunyan said.
In an interview, Bunyan also talked about expanding Husky Clothing for All beyond Stamford, and beyond just clothing. Bunyan established the beginning of Husky Harvest, UConn’s food pantry, years ago when it was just a single food pantry on the Stamford campus. Now, Husky Harvest has locations at every single campus, and it’s possible that Husky Clothing for All will reach that level one day.
Students need support, and we all need access to information, and part of being successful in college is having information about resources that are available to students.
UConn sociology professor, Laura Bunyan
On top of that, Bunyan wants to expand beyond exclusively clothing and include cooking utensils to supplement Husky Harvest. Since the Stamford campus doesn’t have a dining hall, students have to choose between eating out or cooking their own food, and many students don’t have access to necessary tools. “If we have canned goods, well if you don’t have a can opener you don’t take canned goods,” Bunyan said when talking about Husky Harvest. Bunyan also mentioned the idea of a free textbook library, but since Husky Clothing for All gets no funding from the university, this kind of expansion could be difficult.
Although Dress for Success was founded in 2018, the event began to disappear as the students who helped Bunyan found it began to graduate. Once the COVID-19 pandemic happened, Dress for Success disappeared completely. In 2021, as things began to happen in person again, Bunyan realized there was a real need for clothing to be offered to students, and more than just formal wear.
When Husky Clothing for All started again in 2021, Bunyan would post on Facebook asking for donations, and wait for hours in a parking lot hoping people would come to drop clothes off. Since then, students helping run Husky Clothing for All have partnered with UConn’s Center for Career Development, and formed an official clothing drop-off point at Piper and Dune, a gift shop in Southbury, Conn.
If you’d like more information about Husky Clothing for All, you can email Bunyan at laura.bunyan@uconn.edu or follow Husky Clothing for All on Instagram at @huskyclothingforall.