Faculty
Sharon Welkey Ph.D.
Director of the Fashion Management program.
Dr. Welkey received her Bachelor of Science in Family and Consumer Sciences from Henderson State University in Arkadelphia, AR, her Master of Science in Fashion Merchandising with a minor in Marketing from the University of North Texas in Denton, and her Ph.D. in Clothing and Textiles from Texas Woman’s University in Denton. She has over 20 of experience in the class room as well as 10 years of industry experience.
Her areas of research interest include surveying consumers to determine factors that influence shopping behavior. She published most recently in the Family and Consumer Sciences Research Journal in 2009 for her part in a research project entitled “Cultural Adaptability and Study Abroad: A Measure of Change.” Dr. Welkey has made numerous presentations to theInternational Textile and Apparel Association (ITAA), the American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences (AAFCS), and the Texas Association of Family and Consumer Sciences (TAFCS).
As part of Dr. Welkey’s doctoral dissertation she conducted research to determine apparel and home furnishings retailers and manufacturers knowledge of cotton, wool and mohair. Her future work will include studying the impact of advertising and brand loyalty on Generation Y.
Dr. Welkey came to Incarnate Word in 2008 from Texas State University where she taught Fashion Merchandising courses for 6 years and was the Program Coordinator for 3 years. At UIW she currently teaches Introduction to Fashion Management, Visual Merchandising, Buying Principles (capstone course), and Internship.
Carla Anderson Perez
Dr. Carla Anderson Perez joined the UIW fashion faculty in 1999. She teaches fashion design classes including: pattern making, draping, and computer-aided-design.
Dr. Perez received a Bachelor’s Degree with a major in Family Studies and Consumer Sciences and a minor in Dance from San Diego State University (SDSU) in 1974. She received her Master’s in Home Economics with a minor in Multicultural Bilingual Education from SDSU in 1981.
After several years teaching clothing and textile courses at the university level in state universities in California, Texas, and Florida, she began her doctoral studies at Texas Woman’s University in Denton, Texas. During her doctoral studies, Dr. Perez taught the use of computer-aided-design systems to industry professionals working in various firms throughout the western hemisphere. Recruiting of executive trainees by apparel specialty chain, conventional department, and discount department shoes was the focus of her dissertation completed in 1999.
As a member of International Textile and Apparel Association (ITAA), Dr. Perez has shown original apparel designs and research presentations of apparel manufacturing at conferences since 1990. She was among a select few designers invited to present at ITAA’s Confluences Conference in Lyon, France, in 1997. She has also exhibited several designs with the Fiber Artists of San Antonio and AAFCS.
Melinda K. Adams, Ph.D.
Dr. Melinda K. Adams received a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Nebraska Omaha and Lincoln in 1996 with an emphasis in textile and apparel design. While completing her bachelor’s degree, she managed a retail food store and worked part-time for Maurices, a retail clothing store. Upon completion of her bachelor’s degree, she moved to Laramie, Wyoming, to take a management position with Maurices.
In the summer of 1998, Dr. Adams began a master’s degree at the University of Wyoming. During her master’s program, she assisted with beginning and intermediate construction, social psychology of clothing, visual merchandising, textiles, and fiber art classes. Dr. Adams also taught flat pattern design and fashion illustration. Her master’s degree is in Family and Consumer Sciences with an emphasis in textiles and merchandising was conferred in 2000. Her area of research was defining wearable art.
A Doctoral degree in Education was received from the University of Wyoming in December of 2004. She also took several graduate level merchandising and design courses from Colorado State University as part of her doctoral degree. The research for her dissertation focused on defining creative scholarship and identifying criteria to evaluate creative scholarship for tenure and promotion at institutions of higher education. While completing her doctoral degree, she taught apparel design and manufacturing at Texas Tech University.
Since 1999, Dr. Adams has been a member of the American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences and routinely presents creative scholarship at the national conference. She is currently Chair for the Apparel, Textiles, and Design community of the American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences. Melinda has been the curator for the mounted exhibit for the International Textile and Apparel Association. She is also a member of the American Quilter’s Society, where she has shown creative work, and the International Quilt Association. Dr. Adams has also had pieces are part of a traveling exhibit with Hoffmann Fabrics.
Dr. Melinda K. Adams joined UIW in January of 2005. She will be continuing research in the area of defining creative scholarship. Producing pieces of creative scholarship are a top priority as well as continuing to learn new embroidery techniques. Dr. Adams teaches upper and lower level construction courses such as Apparel 1 & 2 and Senior Collections 1 & 2. She also teaches a variety of other courses offered in Fashion Management. She has taken students on several trips abroad to London, Paris, and Northern Italy, where students visit various fashion design houses and textile manufacturing companies.
Theresa (Teri) Lopez
Ms. Lopez is a graduate of the University of the Incarnate Word Fashion Management program. She also has a Master’s degree in Industrial Psychology and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from St. Mary’s University. She worked in business and industry before following her dream to become a fashion designer by coming back to school at Incarnate Word.
Ms. Lopez teaches the beginning construction courses and the Fashion Show Production course. Her students are responsible for planning The Cutting Edge Fiesta Fashion Show in the spring. Ms. Lopez has also taken students on trips to New York to explore the Fashion District and northern Italy where student visited various fashion design houses and textile manufacturing facilities. She has also served as the faculty sponsor of the Fashion Society.
Theresa Alexander
Ms. Alexander came to UIW in the fall of 2007. She has a Bachelor of Science degree from Texas Tech University and a Master of Arts degree in Fashion and Textiles from Nottingham Trent University in England. She has also studied at the Lesage Ecole de Broderie d’Art in Paris and at the Paris Fashion Institute.
Ms. Alexander teaches construction and fashion illustration courses in the Fashion Management program. Prior to coming to UIW, she taught at Texas Tech for six years. There she taught upper level design and technical courses.
Lalon Alexander
Ms. Alexander came to UIW in the fall of 2009. She holds a Bachelor of Science in fashion design from Texas Tech University and a Master of Fine Arts in Costume Design from Carnegie Mellon University. In addition, she has attended the London College of Fashion, the Fashion Institute of Technology, the Paris Fashion Institute and Lesage Ecole de Broderie d’Art.
Ms. Alexander teaches textiles, fashion history, and various construction classes. She taught at Texas State University in both the Fashion Merchandising and Interior design programs before coming to UIW. Ms. Alexander is co-owner of a custom embroidery and beading business with her sister and they have created projects for film, theatre, and fashion.
