By Dan Nonte, University Relations
Contact: (336) 334-5371
Posted 11-17-06
GREENSBORO, NC - Dr. Nancy Nelson Hodges has been honored for co-authoring the best research paper on professional development presented at the annual meeting of the International Textile and Apparel Association Nov. 1-6 in San Antonio, Texas.
Nelson Hodges, an associate professor in the Department of Consumer, Apparel, and Retail Studies, wrote “Women and Higher Education in Russia: Preparation for Careers in the Apparel Industry” with Dr. Elena Karpova of Iowa State University, who received her doctorate from UNCG in 2005. A UNCG Regular Faculty Grant supported the project.
The authors based their work on questionnaires and hour-long interviews with 25 women in apparel programs at two St. Petersburg universities. Like much of Russian life, higher education has changed dramatically since the fall of the Soviet Union.
Most of the participants said they were inspired to study apparel merchandising or design by the flood of western goods that entered the country in the early 1990s. At the same time, the industry’s rapid transition from large, state-run operations to small, privately owned businesses was a source of anxiety. Nevertheless, the students expressed confidence that they would contribute to Russia’s resurgent apparel industry.
