The University of Georgia (UGA), located just over an hour outside of Atlanta in Athens, Georgia, is one of the top public universities in the United States, ranked #13 in the nation by U.S. News & World Report and #17 by Forbes.

UGA’s College of Family and Consumer Sciences houses the Department of Textiles, Merchandising and Interiors, a partner in Advanced Functional Fabrics of America (AFFOA) and supported by the Georgia Softgoods Education Foundation Board. The program’s Fashion Merchandising program is ranked #2 in the South, with emphases in Fashion Brand Management, Fashion Design, and Product Development and Design, which is specifically oriented to prepare students for careers in production and sourcing, and encompasses sewing and manufacturing, apparel supply chain, and entrepreneurship. The program’s state-of-the-art labs enable students to learn digital design, pattern making, sewing, construction, and digital printing, and house equipment and technology from SPESA members like Juki, Brother, and Lectra.

“We have been involved with UGA’s College of Family and Consumer Sciences through the Georgia Softgoods Education Foundation Board for several years,” said Kristy Meade, Show Director, Technical Shows: Textiles, Sewn Products, Equipment and Technology at Messe Frankfurt North America. “…and after the successful relationship between Techtextil North America and North Carolina State University (NCSU) in 2019, it was clear that Texprocess Americas and UGA could utilize the same model to help in providing advanced industry exposure to the next generation of textile industry professionals, promoting a healthy future for the industry as whole,” said Meade.