Key Takeaways

• UCO alum Alisa “Trang” Green founded the Oklahoma City branch of Dress for Success after immigrating to Oklahoma as a child refugee.
• Dress for Success provides women with professional clothing, interview preparation and long-term support services.
• The nonprofit served about 600 clients last year, many referred through government agencies and domestic violence organizations.
• Green said the organization focuses on helping women achieve long-term financial independence and stability.

Alisa “Trang” Green was born in a Malaysian refugee camp to parents who escaped communist Vietnam after the Fall of Saigon. Green’s father’s family had fought for South Vietnam, so her parents decided to leave the country. When Green was ten months old, the family was approved to immigrate to America. They ended up in Oklahoma and were taken in by a local church that helped them find jobs and learn English — something Green said sparked her interest in nonprofits.

“Growing up, it was all about nonprofits that really poured into my family, helping us get on our feet. So that is kind of why I love Oklahoma and want to give back,” Green said. 

During her time at UCO, Green initially planned to go into news, but she said she felt a nudge to start her own nonprofit. 

“When I graduated UCO, I traveled a little bit more,” Green said, “but then I settled down and I started the paperwork to bring the Dress for Success organization that is based in New York to Oklahoma.”

Dress for Success is a nonprofit organization that provides wraparound support services for women. These services include equipping women with a professional wardrobe, teaching them how to put together a resume and coaching them on how to respond during job interviews. Green is the CEO and founder of the Oklahoma City branch. 

According to the “About Us” section of the national Dress for Success website, the organization has a total of 130 network members across 15 countries. Green said that all Dress for Success affiliates are financially independent and responsible for their own budgets and financials. The Oklahoma City location was approved in 2013, opened its doors in 2015 and has been in operation ever since.

Before the physical location had even opened, people in the OKC community offered their assistance. 

“People are like, What can I do to help? Can I start saving up clothes? Do you want me to do a clothing drive? Let me ask my church. Let me ask my business,” Green said. 

Green said that local boutique owners donated their surplus stock to Dress for Success so that women who use its services have new items to choose from. 

The motto of the OKC Dress for Success, according to Green, is that every woman who wants to start over deserves the best of the best. There are some items that the nonprofit will not accept if they are used — including undergarments and shapewear. 

Green said she wishes people would put themselves in the shoes of many of these women, who are often escaping domestic abuse. 

“I mean, I’m starting over. I’m trying to find work, and you’re giving me used underwear… that’s not dignified,” Green said. “We treat everybody with dignity here at Dress for Success, because we know at the end of the day that could be us too.” 

Green said the majority of women who come to Dress for Success are single mothers. 

“How are they supposed to buy a bra, a blazer, some slacks just for a job interview?” Green said. “That’s just not going to be a part of their budget.” 

Dress for Success gets many of its client referrals from agencies like the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs and the Department of Corrections. They also receive referrals from other nonprofits such as Palomar, an OKC-based nonprofit that assists survivors of domestic violence. 

Green said they had 600 clients last year. 

“So we’re really, really busy, and we literally only have three staff here and one intern,” Green said. One goal she has for the future is to hire another program coordinator. 

Part of the reason Dress for Success is so busy is because once a woman becomes a client, she has access to its services forever. 

“We’re not like other nonprofits. It’s one where we’re like, Okay, well, we helped you. Good luck, you know, and that’s it. Some of our clients have been with us for 10-plus years, since I started Dress for Success,” Green said. 

Green said one of those long-term clients, a woman who was formerly incarcerated in a federal prison, is now on the board of Dress for Success. She’s one of many women who have achieved a better future after becoming a Dress for Success client. 

“We’re cranking out women who are self-sufficient and financially stable,” Green said. “Now that I’ve been doing this for over 10 years, they’ve bought houses, they’ve bought cars. Some of them have launched their own businesses. So what we do works.” 

Green said that in the nonprofit world, she sometimes hears people say that the disenfranchised women she helps are “living off welfare” and having too many children. Green’s response to that is that if these people donate money and clothing to Dress for Success, the issue wouldn’t exist. 

“I can prove to you that these women are not what you think they are, and that they’re trying their best to get off government assistance or whatever it is you’re whining about,” Green said. “Why not give me the money and I can crank out a girl — and I guarantee you I can — that’s not living off government assistance, and who is financially sustainable on her own.” 

Green said that when her family first immigrated to America, they also lived off government assistance until they got on their feet. 

“They just needed the help, and the nonprofit stepped in and helped us get to where we are,” Green said. 

When asked what she wanted people to know, Green said she wants others to recognize the value nonprofits bring to communities and to think about what they personally can contribute, whether that be by contributing monetarily, with physical items or by volunteering. 

“Giving back is something that everyone needs to do at some point of their life, because it humbles you,” Green said. “If anyone out there complains about how bad this and that is — or how the community is this or that way — are you doing anything to change it? That would be my biggest question, because if you’re not, then you do not get a complaint. So roll up your sleeves and go do something about it.”