When Monique Manaloto offers advice to freshmen, she offers two things: “Gain self-awareness, and be effortlessly in love with what you do.” As Manaloto prepares to graduate this spring, it is clear that she has taken her own advice. The Iovine and Young Academy senior’s enthusiasm for the fashion industry design shines through every word she says and writes about it—and that spark has caught attention far beyond the Academy itself: this winter, for the second year in a row, Monique Manaloto has won the YMA Fashion Scholarship Fund case study competition, one of only 200 recipients selected from applicants across 65 colleges and universities.

Even before she entered the Academy, Manaloto had a longstanding passion for art and design. “I loved all kinds of design, I wanted to do all kinds of art.” She fit right in at the Academy, which paired her broad interests with training in art, technology, and business skills. And luckily, she just happened to be interested in an industry that requires all of them: fashion.

The fashion industry is a near-perfect fit for an Academy student. Fashion is artistic in its conceptual designs, technological in its construction, and, at its core, a business: from sketch to material to manufacture to distribution in a supply chain that spans the globe. After studying at the Academy, Manaloto saw that, as massive as the fashion industry is, there were unfilled niches. 

That piercing analytical mindset is evident in her case study submissions for the Fashion Scholarship Fund: one creating a collection and retail concept for the digital age, and this year, for the globalization of fashion. It is impossible to look at her case studies without recognizing those essays’ focus on sustainability and equality derive from Manaloto’s deep capacity for awareness—an extension of that same self-awareness she encourages freshmen to seek. It is a testament to Manaloto’s intelligence and her character that her vision of entrepreneurship sees unfilled niches, not only for products but for companies that authentically espouse the values of their consumers.

Now, Manaloto is gathering a team to explore these niches. While still at the Academy, Manaloto has gained experiences with companies and initiatives such as Adidas, Fender Musical Instruments, Nautica, Palm Pack, and Eckhaus Latta. She is the co-founder and creative director of Self-, which aims to create “a sustainable, smart fashion ecosystem and social platform to democratize mental wellness through a culture of conscious creativity and community.” The fledgling company is an experiment in wearable tech, sustainability, and environmental and social practices in fashion. It is part of her Garage Experience, as she and her colleagues Trent and Tara design fashion tech that can track both physical and mental health data. But Manaloto sees even more potential: “Our team has so much creative chemistry and justified concern for current business/production practices of the fashion industry today that I’m confident that our project will go far.”

This past January, Manaloto flew to New York to attend the Awards Gala for the Fashion Scholarship Fund. Surrounded by both peers and mentors in the fashion industry, there could be no doubt: Manaloto is effortlessly in love with what she does.

YMA Fashion Scholarship Winner: Monique Manaloto