photo by: Contributed/Aziza Smith

The Haskell American Indian Business Leaders student club is hosting a business casual clothing drive throughout February. The club plans to then help donate the clothes to local youth through a "pop-up closet" event once the drive is complete.

A group of Haskell Indian Nations University students is hosting a clothing drive for business attire that they hope will help the Lawrence community.

The Haskell American Indian Business Leaders student club is asking the community to donate “gently used” professional clothing. That includes business casual attire like long sleeve button up shirts, professional skirts, slacks, dress shoes, ties formal dress shirts and blazers.

Aziza Smith, a senior at Haskell and president of the business club running the drive, said the event was partially inspired by firsthand experiences of club members not having business attire. She told the Journal-World there have been instances in the past few years when students have realized a conference for the club’s national organization required professional dress, and students had to “reach out to local organizations” for financial assistance to buy those clothes.

photo by: Contributed/Aziza Smith

Aziza Smith, a senior at Haskell and president of the campus’s American Indian Business Leaders chapter.

Currently, Smith and her fellow Haskell students are accepting donations Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on campus at Kiva Hall, 305 Zuni Ave.

Smith said the club is “all about developing young adults into leaders,” and for students who might be applying to jobs or internships, having a lack of professional attire can be a barrier. She hopes that by providing the business casual clothes, the club can help remove that concern and propel young people forward.

“We just really wanted to empower young adults and students to help them dress for success,” Smith said.

This will be the first time the club is hosting the event, and Smith said she hopes that the clothing drive can help Native youth beyond the campus community. Smith said the club is collecting clothes through the end of the month, and then will host a “pop-up closet” where various organizations can pick up clothes.

The club plans to first offer the clothes to Native youth groups in Lawrence — like the intertribal club at Lawrence High School and Native American Student Services with the Lawrence school district — but will eventually expand the reach out further to Haskell and Native KU students before opening it up to the general public.

Smith said she hopes the Lawrence community can “donate a lot” of clothes so the reach can go far beyond just Haskell.

“I think sometimes events like this at Haskell get limited to only the (campus) community,” Smith said. “For whatever reason people would need clothes, we hope we can provide something they could use.”

photo by: Contributed/Aziza Smith

Members of the Haskell American Indian Business Leaders student club volunteering at South Park during Lawrence’s “Art in the Park” at South Park in 2025.