Earlier this year, Woodland High School started a no-cost closet project for its students called Woody’s Closet.

Since then, Woody’s Closet has expanded and received numerous donations from community members, transforming it into a fashion boutique that provides students with a resource for clothing and other essentials, all at no cost.

Over 40 students gathered during lunch this past Friday to shop at the closet, which features dresses, shoes, professional clothes, jewelry, hygiene and much more.

Woodland High School Vice Principal Elizabeth Menendez shared that the idea to start the closet originated as a way to boost attendance and assist students who needed clothing.

“We started to think about what is it that our kids at Woodland High School need, and we got a donation of some clothing, and we divied it up, and it went like hot cakes,” Menendez recalled. “We wanted to find a way to boost attendance for our students. We had a lot of kids who wore the same outfit or had clothing that was not appropriate for the weather, or they didn’t have appropriate clothing or shoes.”

Menendez said that the closet turned into a way for students to volunteer and dedicate community service hours.

“Our purpose was to help kids find clothing so that they can be at school,” Menendez said. “What it’s turned into is kids coming here for community service hours, kids coming here to help make outfits, kids donating their own clothes, kids coming to just help out and hang out. It’s blossomed into so much more.”

Menendez runs Woody’s Closet alongside Woodland High School RTI Specialist Beatriz Gutierrez, who works with the student peer tutors who help around the boutique.

Gutierrez says that 80 to 100 students visit Woody’s Closet per day and shares that her favorite part about working in the closet is seeing the students’ smiles.

“Their smiles,” Gutierrez said. “I’m a student who graduated from Woodland High, and I come from a really poor background, so I didn’t have the privilege of having a school that allowed me to get free clothing that is good quality. I was very happy because there was a student who hadn’t been on campus for a while, because he’s struggling, and he actually came and he was smiling, which I haven’t seen him smile in a long time.”

Students like sophomore Izzie Tafoya appreciate that Woody’s Closet serves as a way for them to expand their clothing options.

“I like it because it gives a lot of students and myself, the opportunity to expand our clothing,” she said. “Some of us can’t afford it, some of us just need different clothing for different types, and it’s harder to find that. Some of my friends come here because their parents don’t allow them to get certain types of clothing, and they can get that certain type of clothing that they want here. So it’s an accessible thing for people to get clothes at.”

Sophomore Milly Haze also visits the closet often and likes that there is a variety of stuff that everyone can choose from.

“I like that there’s a variety of new and already used clothes, and that it’s for everyone,” Haze said. “They have stuff for guys, girls, they even have hygiene stuff and jewelry, and makeup, which I really like. It saves a lot of money coming here rather than shopping for brand new stuff.”

Woodland Joint School District Superintendent Elodia Ortega-Lampkin shared that she is very inspired to see students and administration at WHS come up with this idea.

“I think it’s bringing students together from different backgrounds to trade clothes, share clothes, and it meets a social need for high school students, but it’s also a cool thing, a new trend is happening with our young people, and to have it here at the school and to see different students coming from different walks of life, having fun, enjoying and sharing the clothing, and it also demonstrates how mindful they are about the environment and about reusing. Very proud of that,” Ortega-Lampkin said.

Ortega-Lampkin hopes that this project will continue to expand as it meets the social needs of students, while also allowing them to explore potential career ideas and interests, much like senior Navaeh Gomez, who dreams of opening her own boutique one day.

WJUSD Board President Deborah Bautista Zavala shares that, as a former Woodland High School student, she is excited to see these resources available to all students and hopes the project will continue to grow.

“Seeing this room full of donated clothes and shoes, and accessories that our students can come in and have for free is a huge resource to our students, but seeing them be excited about having this resource available to them and seeing them vibrate. It’s positive, and I think that they appreciate it, and I’m excited to see this grow and collaborate and support this,” Zavala said.

Zavala continues: “One of our students, who came in and she was in here looking for jeans for work, and one of the things that I told her was, if you’re working, you don’t want to spend your money on clothes for work. So I was excited to see her use this resource in order to find the clothes she needed. So I want to acknowledge all of our teachers and staff who made this happen, and continuing to build on this is huge, and we may need some community support, and I think that this is definitely going in the right direction and meeting the needs of our students.”

Zavala also said that she hopes to bring a version of Woody’s Closet to Pioneer and Cache Creek High Schools.

“I think both definitely benefit from a space like this, where they can find shoes or pants or sweatshirts or shirts that they can use and may not have the money to buy,” Zavala said. “I think this is the kind of support that we need to give to our students, especially during a time where the cost of food and clothes and shoes is rising, we’re going to see more and more students with need and if we can create fun spaces like this, they won’t be embarrassed to be able to seek the help.”