A new resource has been established for students in need of clothes.
The new Clothing Closet makes available to students gently-used shirts, pants, shoes, coats, hoodies and more, said Student Success Coordinator Dominique Ruiz.
“I went to an art school, and we would have this thing once a semester where students would take all of the clothes they didn’t use anymore and exchange or sell them to each other,” she said. “I just thought it was a really cool way of offering an opportunity to people who didn’t have clothes to get some.”Ruiz, too, said her own experiences engaging with students here led her to believe that such an initiative would be popular at Vincennes University. It also helped that she had several totes of her own clothes sitting at home – items that needed a new purpose. And who better to help, she said, than her own students?“Students would come in seeking specific resources and I just started thinking about what I could do to make things easier for them,” Ruiz said.She knew she wasn’t alone either. Others had expressed a similar need to find a new home for unwanted clothing items.“I talked to my Starbucks girls, and they asked me if there was somewhere they could donate their unused thrift store finds,” she said. Ruiz partnered with the university’s Counseling Center and library staff, then established a location for people to bring donations, and for students to come shop. Students can now walk into the Student Success Center, located inside the Shake LRC, ring the doorbell for assistance and be led into a room where the clothing items can be looked through.Written on a whiteboard in the room are the words “Caring Closet,” a sentiment Ruiz figured would flow well with her earlier established Caring Cabinet that can be found right outside.At this time, the Caring Closet has a surplus of small- and medium-sized clothing but is in need of larger sizes, including jackets, coats, and men’s clothing, too.To donate, contact Ruiz at [email protected] or call 812-888-4451.“If there is a student who isn’t comfortable coming and looking through the items, they can email me,” she added. “I can grab the things they need, put it in a bag and they can pick it up.”
If a student is in need, despite what the flyer says, the center welcomes students to come any day of the week to get help.
Volunteers are also welcome to help sort through donated clothing.
The Caring Closet is now open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
