Sha'Mira Covington
College of Family and Consumer Sciences
PhD Candidate & Graduate Teaching Assistant
Education
| Degree | Field of Study | Institution | Graduation |
|---|---|---|---|
| B.S. | Fashion Merchandising, Art History | The University of Georgia | 2011 |
| M.S. | Communications- Public Relations | Syracuse University | 2018 |
| Ph.D. | Polymer, Fiber, and Textile Sciences- International Merchandising emphasis, African American Studies | The University of Georgia | 2023 |
Research
Sha'Mira's research explores fashion as a cultural, historical, social, and political phenomenon involved in and affected by histories of colonial domination, anti-colonial resistance, and processes of decolonization and globalization. Her primary interests are in Africana studies within the fashion-industrial complex, African diaspora fashion history, and womanist pedagogy.
Master's thesis: "Fashnexus?: Blockchain, Sustainability, and Corporate Social Responsibility"
Teaching
The University of Georgia, Athens, GA, Instructor of record
Introduction to Family and Consumer Sciences (Spring 2020)
The University of Georgia, Athens, GA, present, Teaching Assistant
Awards
| Award Name | Awarded By | Year Awarded |
|---|---|---|
| Jan Hathcote Social Science Award | UGA College of Family and Consumer Sciences | 2019 |
| FACS Funds for Excellence | UGA College of Family and Consumer Sciences | 2019 |
| Myron G. Burney Service Award | The Black Faculty & Staff Organization | 2019 |
| New Approaches Grant for Diversity and Inclusion | UGA Office of Institutional Diversity | 2019 |
| Endsley Peifer Research Award | UGA College of Family and Consumer Sciences | 2020 |
| Graduate Education Advancement Board Fellowship | UGA Graduate School | 2020 |
| Graduate Research Award | Willson Center for Humanities and Art | 2021 |
| SEC Emerging Scholar | Southeaster Conference | 2021 |
Service
| Organization | Title | Year(s) | Service Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| University of Georgia Graduate School xPD Advisory Board | Current | ||
| Public Relations Society of America | Member | Current | |
| International Textile and Apparel Association | Member | Current | |
| Association of Black Women Historians | Member | Current | |
| Costume Society of America, Southeastern Region | Member | Current | |
| Graduate Student Association | TMI Representative | Current | |
| Black Women Studies Association | Member | Current | |
| National Black Council of Black Studies | Member | Current |
Outreach
Healing and Wellness Program Coordinator for Chess and Community, Athens GA, 2019
Community Partner, African American Oral History Initiative with the Russell Library for Political Research and Studies, Athens GA, 2019
Advisory Committee
Major profoessor: Dr. Katalin Medvedev
Committee member: Dr. Patricia Hunt-Hurst
Committee member: Dr. Carolyn Medine
Committee member: Dr. Lesley Feracho
Committee member: Dr. Kathryn Roulston
Hobbies and Passion
Certified Yoga Instructor- I practice and teach yoga as a form of healing justice. My goal is to create a space that reclaims the art of yoga as a practice designed for the particular experiences of Black and Brown people. I believe that yoga helps us heal ourselves from the same types of traumas and oppressions that are impacting the world. Our practice of yoga = resistance and revolution.
Current Research
I am currently interested in the commodification of racialized bodily discourses (fashion, yoga, dance) as protest.
My other research interests include:
- Racial representation within the fashion-industrial complex
- Decolonization within the yoga-industrial complex
- Blackness and media
- Afro-Indigenous studies
- Dance performance, politics, and identity
- Black political/protest dress and efficacy
- Fashion and aesthetics as political tools
- Social justice pedagogy in fashion studies
- Contemplative pedagogy
- Race and decolonization pedagogy
- Crititcal analysis of corporate social responsibility
Journal Articles
Covington, S., Medvedev, K. 2019. “Dressing for Freedom and Justice”. Clothing Cultures, 6(2), 215-235.
Working Papers
Covington, S., Medvedev, K. “Woke” Brands?: An Analysis of Racial Consciousness and the Limits of Corporate Social Responsibility in the Fashion-Industrial Complex. [CTRJ].
Reed, J., Covington, S., Medvedev, K. “New Directions for Fashion Education: Centering Positionality and Social Justice Pedagogy”. [Fashion and Education]
Covington, S., Medine, C. “Africana Yogi Personae: Black Yoga Practitioners’ Aesthetic Negotiations in Dress”. [Race and Yoga].
Covington, S., Han, J., Lyu, J. “A Preliminary Study: CSR Advertising, Mere Exposure, and Endowment Effect on Social Activism in the Fashion-Industrial Complex”. [Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management].