Morehouse College alumnus James M. Jeter has been named the creative director for Polo Ralph Lauren, becoming the first black person to serve in the position. The promotion is the culmination of an amazing career journey for Jeter, who has worked for Ralph Lauren since he was just 16, when he was a part-time salesperson for a Ralph Lauren Rugby store. In all of 57-year history, none of Ralph Lauren’s Creative Directors have been Black. Jeter is making history in the fashion industry.

“This milestone is the result of the mentorship, sponsorship, and encouragement of many incredible people to whom I am forever indebted,” he said in a statement published on the Morehouse College Newsroom. “This milestone is the result of the mentorship, sponsorship, and encouragement of many incredible people to whom I am forever indebted.”

Following the death of George Floyd and protests in 2020, an intern at Polo Ralph Lauren confided in the billionaire founder Ralph Lauren about his concern that the iconic clothing brand’s work environment would remain all white. Four years later, that same intern is now the company’s first Black Creative Director.

Before becoming Creative Director, Jeter brought a new perspective of the academic elite to Ralph Lauren in 2022. Leading the company’s first campaign with an all-black creative team and cast, he designed an HBCU-inspired clothing for Ralph Lauren called the Morehouse and Spelman College Collection.

The collection was fueled by the idea of elusive prestige, which are often associated with the Ralph Lauren brand. With its creation, Jeter intended to show that those same ideas can exist at African American institutions.

Jeter told Yahoo News that the Ralph Lauren brand is known for “this kind of aspirational image that has historically been associated with Ivy Leagues and sort of white American culture.”

“All the while,” he continued, “these images were kind of alive and well at these amazing HBCUs that are Morehouse and Spelman College.”

Morehouse and Spelman, jointly called “SpelHouse”, exist in close proximity with their Atlanta campuses located just across the street from one other. Similarly, they share historical and generational practices that permit both schools to preserve their unique culture.

Traditions such as Spelman College’s century-old white dress ceremony and Morehouse’s customary student dress code of suit and tie embody both schools’ distinguished higher education. Jeter wanted to capture this essence through his Ralph Lauren collection, which reflects the spirit of being well-dressed that resonates strongly across all HBCUs.

Morehouse College was the only college that Jeter applied to after graduating high school. He graduated from Morehouse in 2013, seven years later he secured the opportunity to pitch his creative project idea to Ralph Lauren’s billionaire founder.