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The Fiber Arts Circle is crocheting, cross-stitching and needle-felting an environment dedicated to inclusion and the arts. 

By Natalie Boutiette | Photos by Nancy Sheehan

On a cold day ahead of a snowstorm this winter, a group of Worcester State students were huddled together inside, each crafting their own textile blocks to later be sewn together to create one large quilt. 

Given the weather outside, the vibes were cozy, yet keeping warm wasn’t quite the group’s goal. As members of the Fiber Arts Circle, a campus club launched in 2023 that gets together for knitting, crochet, needle-felting, cross-stitching and other art projects, the students were hard at work putting together a “unity quilt.” 

Made in collaboration with members of different culture and identity groups across campus—including the Intercultural Student Alliance, the Black Student Union and the LGBTQ+ Alliance—the project was meant to give a creative platform to students to embrace and celebrate their diversity.

“As a club, we were wondering what kind of project we could take on that would say: ‘We are diverse and we value that,’” said Althea Bediako ’27, treasurer of the Fiber Arts Circle. 

The spirit of inclusion and creativity behind the unity quilt is fundamental to the Fiber Arts Circle. Its members meet every Monday, ready to engage in crochet, embroidery, sewing and similar activities, while at the same time building a welcoming, caring and constructive social community. The goal, members say, is to create a supportive space where individuals can express themselves artistically and, as importantly, make new friends, talk freely about college life, and unwind from the stress of their studies, jobs, and personal obligations.

“We discuss everything from selecting classes to working with professors, as well as the fiber arts,” added Bediako, who studies psychology and addiction counseling. “Having a craft in your hands while you meet new people makes the social aspect of college much easier. The club is warm and accepting, and that’s one of my favorite things about it.”

Those characteristics of the club are a draw for many members. 

Despite having little experience with the arts himself, Michael Juarez ’26, who studies business administration and Spanish, joined the club as a commuter student looking for connection on campus. He said he found the Fiber Arts Circle by way of a club fair in the spring of 2025, and felt the members he met there shared similar community-minded values. 

“I had never tried anything arts and crafts-related before,” he said. “On my first day, they taught me crochet, and I‘ve been coming ever since. The best part was finding a group with these shared interests. It’s very inclusive.”

In addition to projects like the unity quilt and weekly club meetings, the Fiber Arts Circle hosts a variety of events intended to knit the college community closer together. For students who can’t attend regular meetings, the club convenes once a semester for a late night knitting session. At other events, club leaders serve as art teachers of sorts, leading workshops in cross-stitching, canvas bag painting, and making friendship bracelets.

One of the club’s most popular events is its Valentine’s Day Fundraiser, where the group sells handmade crafts, like crochet flowers. “It’s always really fun to see the community get excited about our crafts, and it’s nice to know that our flowers are given as gifts to peoples’ loved ones,” said Bediako. 

Club president Alyson Archambault ’27 noted she has spent upwards of 20 hours making crafts as gifts for events like these. “The amount of time and effort it takes to learn a skill to create a gift says a lot,” she said. “The intention behind something handmade cannot be replicated.” 

Events like the fundraiser, in tandem with support from the school and other supply drives, enable the club to operate at no cost to students. 

The Fiber Arts Circle is one of more than 40 clubs and organizations at Worcester State that help students develop lifelong skills and friendships while providing social enrichment and intellectual stimulation. 

Other clubs include the Asian Boba Club, which is dedicated to breaking down barriers and celebrating Asian culture, traditions, cuisine and language; Active Minds, which works to increase students’ awareness of and provide resources relating to mental health issues; and Dance Company, which gives students of all skill levels the chance to learn and perform tap, jazz, hip hop, contemporary and other kinds of dance. 

In addition to giving students opportunities for personal growth and connection outside the classroom, these clubs are important as research shows students who are actively involved in campus life are more likely to persist from term to term and ultimately complete their degrees. 

As for the state of the unity quilt, club members will continue assembling it this spring. The club plans to display the completed quilt at this fall’s Unity Day, a yearly campus-wide event promoting diversity and inclusion. There, it will serve as the most literal of testaments to a true tapestry community. As Bediako said: “The unity quilt allows us to come together, to create something, and to celebrate everyone.”