Shoesday Tuesdays: Skechers Launches After-School Design Program

Footwear Webdesk
March 29, 2011

Thanks to Skechers new after-school program, kids can combine their creative efforts with a one of their favorite items—shoes. The nationwide shoe design program is in partnership with national non-profit After-School All-Stars (ASAS), an organization committed to helping disadvantaged youth and founded by former California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger in 1992.

“Mr. Schwarzenegger has been a friend to the company long before he was elected Governor of California,” notes Skechers President Michael Greenberg. “When the opportunity to partner with ASAS was presented to us, we felt it was a wonderful fit for the mission of the Skechers Foundation, and we were excited to partner with an organization created to inspire and empower students.”

The program kicked off in February at Skechers corporate headquarters in Manhattan Beach, CA, where 25 ASAS students from Griffith Middle School in East Los Angeles attended four weeks of classes led by the company’s footwear designers, with the goal of producing an actual prototype shoe. “The students were surprised to learn how many elements are involved in the process of designing and producing a shoe,” Greenberg says. “It opened their eyes to an entirely new world of career possibilities they wouldn’t normally encounter in a traditional academic setting.”

Nationally, students participating in the program will learn about the creative process and mechanics of footwear design through a curriculum developed by the Skechers Fitness Group design team. The top five designs will be put up for vote on the Skechers and After-School All-Stars’ Facebook pages, with the winner getting the chance of making it into a future Skechers collection. “By developing a unique program like shoe design classes,” Greenberg adds, “we’re finding new ways to connect with children across the nation.” —Audrey Goodson