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B.C. teen’s math homework grad dress aims to raise money for girls’ education

WATCH: A Victoria teenager is getting some well-deserved props for turning her high school graduation into a statement heard around the world. But as Kylie Stanton reports, that’s only part of her remarkable idea.

VANCOUVER – As the school year wraps up many high school graduates are thinking about their own future.

But one grad from Victoria was thinking about the future of others.

Erinne Paisley designed her prom dress out of math homework with a very specific message – to raise awareness about the plight of girls around the world who have to fight for an education.

“Over 62 million girls around the world don’t have access to secondary education, which is actually almost double the population of Canada,” said Paisley. “So while everyone was starting to celebrate our own secondary educations and the gift that really has given us, I thought it would be amazing to really try and redirect all that energy and attention to maybe providing that same opportunity for those who do not have the right to [education] around the world.”
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WATCH: Erinne Paisley talks to BC1 about deciding to make her prom dress out of math homework.

Paisley said her inspiration for the idea was Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani teenager who was shot in the face by the Taliban for speaking out about girls’ education rights.

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The dress was made from old math homework and took about eight hours to put together. “It’s just made out of my old pre-calculus 11 notes,” said Paisley. “I did wear shorts underneath, just in case.”

Erinne Paisley’s math homework grad dress. Submitted

She has now put up the dress for auction to raise money for the Malala Fund. The auction is currently at $600 and there is more than three weeks left. Paisley also donated the money she would have spent on a grad dress to the fund.

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In September Paisley will be attending the University of Toronto to study international relations.

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