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Jan Marshall’s involvement in the fashion design business began over 30 years ago. At the beginning of her career, she worked in Paris with Nino Cerruti to develop and implement a men’s clothing line targeted for sale in the US. She then opened her own business called Watercolors, Inc. which was a North American company specializing in women’s ready-to-wear garments and separates. She also worked as the Director of Design for Somerset, a division of Van Heusen before coming to teach at Drexel.
Jan is a faculty member for both the Design & Merchandising Program and the Fashion Design Program. Her classes are designed to introduce students to presentation techniques and skills used for communication in the fashion industry. She also teaches portfolio development and an elective class on trend forecasting. Courtney Landis, DSMR class of ’09, says, “Jan is strict, but this inspires students to work hard and create perfect presentations. You spend a lot of time on the homework for her class, but your best work is always done under Jan’s direction.” Jan admits that she is very critical of student work, but her philosophy is that students must be prepared to work in the industry. She tries to instill not only the skills necessary to present well, but also the work ethic that is essential to a student’s success in today’s job market.
In addition to Jan’s many responsibilities at Drexel, she is heavily involved in humanitarian work with disabled children and teenagers for Joni & Friends. This is a ministry that deals with all disabled people and Wheels for the World.