New Design School Aims to Teach Real World Ways to Apply Style

New Design School Aims to Teach Real World Ways to Apply Style
Michelle Mooy once wanted to work as a stylist on a television show, but her classes at a Henderson interior and fashion design school have changed her plans.

Now, Mooy, 31, dreams about having her own clothing line after she graduates from the Las Vegas Valley's only higher-education institution focusing exclusively on interior and fashion design.

The International Academy of Design and Technology, which celebrated its grand opening at its Henderson campus Friday, opened its doors to students in April and already has 300 students enrolled in its design classes. The school is expecting to increase enrollment to 1,500 students over the next few years.

"I could start working for someone big or someone smaller," Mooy said Friday. "We all have to do internships for one quarter of our third year. So that will help me decide."

In the meantime Mooy is joining classmates to help produce and promote a new clothing line by Christa Hilda, a contestant from CBS' "Survivor." Mooy will be her event-planning manager at an upcoming Las Vegas fashion show. Mooy said a class assignment researching the financials of two similar companies helped her understand merchandising.

"I looked at Warner Brothers and Disney. Both offer similar products but Disney is leading the way," Mooy said. "I learned a lot about character merchandis