“Catch Me Up” is a TODAY series where our experts and journalists bring readers up to speed on the day’s biggest headlines.

Olivia Jade Giannulli’s latest fashion collaboration is poking fun at her college admissions scandal, but some fans aren’t laughing.

On Sept. 16, fashion brand Reformation launched a new campaign with Giannulli, who goes by Olivia Jade online, with taglines and designs that reference the YouTuber’s past controversy. An email announcing the 26-year-old’s partnership with the brand showed her posing in a sweatshirt that read “College.”

“Since Olivia Jade is a Good Sport, we brought her back to campus for a lesson in getting dressed,” the brand said.

In 2019, Giannulli’s parents, Lori Loughlin and Mossimo Giannulli, were two of the most high-profile names linked to a college admissions scheme. Loughlin and Mossimo Giannulli were charged with paying fixers to get Olivia Jade Giannulli and sister Bella Giannulli into elite universities. The “Full House” star pleaded guilty to a federal charge of conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud. She served two months in federal prison, paid a $150,000 fine and completed 100 hours of community service. Mossimo Giannulli, who also pleaded guilty, was sentenced to five months, 250 hours of community service and ordered to pay a $250,000 fine.

Read on to learn more about Olivia Jade Giannulli’s Reformation collaboration, including why some fans have said the photos are in poor taste and why others are calling it a “brilliant” marketing strategy.

Olivia Jade Giannulli stars in Reformation’s latest campaign that connects to her college admissions scandal.

For the photoshoot, the social media influencer posed in a “College” sweatshirt and snapped pictures on top of school desks in a classroom.

“@oliviajade is back on campus in a crew that suits her better than the other kind,” Reformation captioned the Instagram post announcing the collaboration.

The brand also shared that “100% of net proceeds” from the College Crew Olivia Jade Giannulli is sporting in some of the pictures will be donated to a nonprofit called Yes Scholars. The organization “identifies high-potential students from low-income communities in Los Angeles, New York City, and rural Appalachian North Carolina, and provides them with the long-term support, resources, and educational access required for success through high school, college, and career,” according to its website.

The crew appears to be another nod to the college controversy involving Olivia Jade Giannulli’s family.

Loughlin and Mossimo Giannulli previously admitted that they paid $500,000 to Rick Singer and Key Worldwide Foundation to help Olivia Jade Giannulli and Bella Giannulli get accepted into the University of Southern California by having them pretend to be rowing recruits. Federal investigators also said that the couple had their daughters pose for photos on rowing machines that were used in their admissions application.

Reps for Olivia Jade Giannulli did not immediately return TODAY.com’s request for comment.

Social media users reacted to the campaign in the comments beneath the Instagram post. The response was divided, with some questioning the tone of the ad.

“Genuinely asking how are people saying this is genius and clever? This is such a slap in the face and obnoxious in my opinion,” one person said.

“So it’s like funny to commit a crime?” one Instagram user asked.

Another pointed out, “Yikes, what an interesting concept to have a well resourced woman do this campaign and have the proceeds go to under-resourced communities from normal people shopping.. what a let down.”

One person suggested, “The new tag line should be: ‘Environmentally conscious yet socially out of touch.’

But others applauded the collaboration.

“Whoever’s idea this was needs a raise,” one comment read.

Another agreed, writing, “Please give a raise to the marketing team@thank you.”

The comments on Olivia Jade Giannulli’s post about the ad were more positive.

“Making lemonade with lemons,” one person praised.

One fan who approved said, “This is how you turn it around hahaha.”

A third wrote, “This is actually brilliant.”

On TikTok, the conversation continued. Who What Wear journalist Erin Fitzpatrick uploaded a video explaining the ad and included her take.

“I went to USC on my own merit, didn’t have to bribe my way in and I’m still paying my student loans well over a decade after I graduated. I definitely don’t appreciate rich people being handed something that I had to work for,” she began.

She continued, “That said, her parents were convicted, they served prison time, and that is a lot more than you can say for a whole lot of rich people who have done a whole lot of other horrible things and have never seen the inside of a prison cell and never will.”

Another TikTok user called out the campaign for being “extremely out of touch.”

“I don’t know why Reformation approved that, but it’s not funny,” he said.

He added that he didn’t see the humor in giving Olivia Jade Giannulli a platform when her parents committed a crime.

“I don’t know why Reformation thought that that was a joke, especially in this world now where we’re constantly seeing privilege and access being used as a tool to escape consequences,” he further explained.

However, he clarified that his video was not about Olivia Jade Giannulli having to face any consequences for her parents’ actions. His issue was that she was “benefiting” from the scheme.

TODAY.com reached out to Reformation for a comment. The brand could not not provide commentary on the situation.

But, Reformation shared more details about the ad.

“People have been studying Olivia’s outfits for a while, so we figured it was time she gave everyone a lesson in dressing for sport,” the brand said.

Adeniz Villar, cultural strategist and talent and brand partnerships executive, tells TODAY.com that Reformation has always had a playful, self-aware approach to marketing.

“Olivia is clearly in on the joke, which is what makes the casting interesting (because) she’s willing to acknowledge a controversial part of her history and poke fun at herself,” Villar says. “And oftentimes for talent, humor can be a way to re-enter the conversation on their own terms.”

While she says that Reformation “understands its own voice” and has a history of using humor and cultural references in their marketing, Villar questions the charitable component. This is where she says the campaign gets “complicated.”

“Catch Me Up” is a TODAY series where our experts and journalists bring readers up to speed on the day’s biggest headlines.

Olivia Jade Giannulli’s latest fashion collaboration is poking fun at her college admissions scandal, but some fans aren’t laughing.

On Sept. 16, fashion brand Reformation launched a new campaign with Giannulli, who goes by Olivia Jade online, with taglines and designs that reference the YouTuber’s past controversy. An email announcing the 26-year-old’s partnership with the brand showed her posing in a sweatshirt that read “College.”

“Since Olivia Jade is a Good Sport, we brought her back to campus for a lesson in getting dressed,” the brand said.

In 2019, Giannulli’s parents, Lori Loughlin and Mossimo Giannulli, were two of the most high-profile names linked to a college admissions scheme. Loughlin and Mossimo Giannulli were charged with paying fixers to get Olivia Jade Giannulli and sister Bella Giannulli into elite universities. The “Full House” star pleaded guilty to a federal charge of conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud. She served two months in federal prison, paid a $150,000 fine and completed 100 hours of community service. Mossimo Giannulli, who also pleaded guilty, was sentenced to five months, 250 hours of community service and ordered to pay a $250,000 fine.

Read on to learn more about Olivia Jade Giannulli’s Reformation collaboration, including why some fans have said the photos are in poor taste and why others are calling it a “brilliant” marketing strategy.

Olivia Jade Giannulli stars in Reformation’s latest campaign that connects to her college admissions scandal.

For the photoshoot, the social media influencer posed in a “College” sweatshirt and snapped pictures on top of school desks in a classroom.

“@oliviajade is back on campus in a crew that suits her better than the other kind,” Reformation captioned the Instagram post announcing the collaboration.

The brand also shared that “100% of net proceeds” from the College Crew Olivia Jade Giannulli is sporting in some of the pictures will be donated to a nonprofit called Yes Scholars. The organization “identifies high-potential students from low-income communities in Los Angeles, New York City, and rural Appalachian North Carolina, and provides them with the long-term support, resources, and educational access required for success through high school, college, and career,” according to its website.

The crew appears to be another nod to the college controversy involving Olivia Jade Giannulli’s family.

Loughlin and Mossimo Giannulli previously admitted that they paid $500,000 to Rick Singer and Key Worldwide Foundation to help Olivia Jade Giannulli and Bella Giannulli get accepted into the University of Southern California by having them pretend to be rowing recruits. Federal investigators also said that the couple had their daughters pose for photos on rowing machines that were used in their admissions application.

Reps for Olivia Jade Giannulli did not immediately return TODAY.com’s request for comment.

Social media users reacted to the campaign in the comments beneath the Instagram post. The response was divided, with some questioning the tone of the ad.

“Genuinely asking how are people saying this is genius and clever? This is such a slap in the face and obnoxious in my opinion,” one person said.

“So it’s like funny to commit a crime?” one Instagram user asked.

Another pointed out, “Yikes, what an interesting concept to have a well resourced woman do this campaign and have the proceeds go to under-resourced communities from normal people shopping.. what a let down.”

One person suggested, “The new tag line should be: ‘Environmentally conscious yet socially out of touch.’

But others applauded the collaboration.

“Whoever’s idea this was needs a raise,” one comment read.

Another agreed, writing, “Please give a raise to the marketing team@thank you.”

The comments on Olivia Jade Giannulli’s post about the ad were more positive.

“Making lemonade with lemons,” one person praised.

One fan who approved said, “This is how you turn it around hahaha.”

A third wrote, “This is actually brilliant.”

On TikTok, the conversation continued. Who What Wear journalist Erin Fitzpatrick uploaded a video explaining the ad and included her take.

“I went to USC on my own merit, didn’t have to bribe my way in and I’m still paying my student loans well over a decade after I graduated. I definitely don’t appreciate rich people being handed something that I had to work for,” she began.

She continued, “That said, her parents were convicted, they served prison time, and that is a lot more than you can say for a whole lot of rich people who have done a whole lot of other horrible things and have never seen the inside of a prison cell and never will.”

Another TikTok user called out the campaign for being “extremely out of touch.”

“I don’t know why Reformation approved that, but it’s not funny,” he said.

He added that he didn’t see the humor in giving Olivia Jade Giannulli a platform when her parents committed a crime.

“I don’t know why Reformation thought that that was a joke, especially in this world now where we’re constantly seeing privilege and access being used as a tool to escape consequences,” he further explained.

However, he clarified that his video was not about Olivia Jade Giannulli having to face any consequences for her parents’ actions. His issue was that she was “benefiting” from the scheme.

TODAY.com reached out to Reformation for a comment. The brand could not not provide commentary on the situation.

But, Reformation shared more details about the ad.

“People have been studying Olivia’s outfits for a while, so we figured it was time she gave everyone a lesson in dressing for sport,” the brand said.

Adeniz Villar, cultural strategist and talent and brand partnerships executive, tells TODAY.com that Reformation has always had a playful, self-aware approach to marketing.

“Olivia is clearly in on the joke, which is what makes the casting interesting (because) she’s willing to acknowledge a controversial part of her history and poke fun at herself,” Villar says. “And oftentimes for talent, humor can be a way to re-enter the conversation on their own terms.”

While she says that Reformation “understands its own voice” and has a history of using humor and cultural references in their marketing, Villar questions the charitable component. This is where she says the campaign gets “complicated.”

“Supporting college access is obviously a meaningful cause but the original scandal involved people breaking the law to gain access to educational opportunities that other students work so hard for,” Villar says. “There’s something that doesn’t quite sit right with me about using that very issue as the punchline of a campaign and then attaching a charitable donation to it. I think it risks making a serious issue about privilege and access feel like something that can be neatly wrapped up with a good joke and a good cause.”

She adds that while both the social media star and the brand made the deliberate choice to poke fun at Olivia Jade Giannulli’s past, “It also puts the non-profit in the middle of a campaign built around a scandal involving the very inequity it’s working to address.”

Olivia Jade Giannulli has addressed the college bribery scandal involving her parents before.

When she appeared on Facebook Watch’s “Red Table Talk” in 2020, she said the situation was “a really eye-opening experience for me.”

Despite the negativity, she said, the scandal led her “to have a completely different outlook on a lot of situations.”

She said she did not justify her parents’ actions and that they made a mistake.

“But I think what’s so important to me is to learn from the mistake, not to now be shamed and published and never given a second chance,” she added.

She later told the co-hosts, “I’m not trying to victimize myself. I don’t want pity. I don’t deserve pity. We messed up. I just want a second chance to be like, ‘I recognize I messed up.’”

She adds that while both the social media star and the brand made the deliberate choice to poke fun at her past, “It also puts the non-profit in the middle of a campaign built around a scandal involving the very inequity it’s working to address.”

Olivia Jade Giannulli has addressed the college bribery scandal involving her parents before.

When she appeared on Facebook Watch’s “Red Table Talk” in 2020, she said the situation was “a really eye-opening experience for me.”

Despite the negativity, she said, the scandal led her “to have a completely different outlook on a lot of situations.”

She said she did not justify her parents’ actions and that they made a mistake.

“But I think what’s so important to me is to learn from the mistake, not to now be shamed and published and never given a second chance,” she added.

She later told the co-hosts, “I’m not trying to victimize myself. I don’t want pity. I don’t deserve pity. We messed up. I just want a second chance to be like, ‘I recognize I messed up.’”