When Apparel is Sewn into Your Life: Dr. Karla Teel
In the heart of Spidle Hall is an influential professor transforming the Apparel Merchandising and Design Production program at Auburn University. Dr. Karla Teel is a teacher who adopts each of her students into her personal “Auburn family”. She has come full circle since she first entered Auburn University as an undergraduate student in 1988 in Textile Engineering. After earning her Ph.D., Dr. Teel returned to the institution where she first felt the calling on her life to shape the next generation of designers.
From the beginning, Dr. Teel has been surrounded by apparel and design due to family influence, extracurricular sewing projects, and the world of academia. Both of her grandmothers influenced her through their work. Her paternal grandmother was a sewing trainer at Vanity Fair in Monroeville, Alabama. In her high school years, Vanity Fair sponsored Dr. Teel on a trip to Auburn University for E-Day, a day that potential engineering students can learn about the College of Engineering. This led to her educational path in Textile Engineering. For her college internship, Dr. Teel worked in the Dye House at Vanity Fair. After observing the Wear Testing done in the Quality Department, a new interest in apparel was sparked. Dr. Teel began obtaining a minor in Apparel Production back at Auburn, and she went on to receive her Master’s in Consumer and Design Sciences in 1996.
While working on her Master’s, Dr. Teel worked as a Teaching Assistant for CADS 2800, Apparel Production Management. She explains “During my time as a TA, I really felt that being a teacher was the calling on my life because I felt so fulfilled and like that was the right place for me.” I speak on behalf of any student who has had the pleasure of learning from Dr. Teel when I affirm that teaching is right where she belongs. She has a way of making her lectures feel like story times which causes the information to make sense in ways it hadn’t before.
Because of her newfound passion for teaching, Dr. Teel finished her Ph.D. in 2002 and began teaching at Auburn University, after over a decade of schooling. Coming back to her Alma Mater, Dr. Teel stays busy. She serves as the Program Coordinator and Internship Coordinator for Apparel Design, teaches three courses throughout the year (CADS 2800, 4800, 5750, and The Fashion Event Planning class), and oversees the photo studio, 3-D body scanner, and production studio. Additionally, she serves on many University and Graduate Committees. When she describes Auburn, Dr. Teel will tell you “I think about all the experiences I had, especially as an undergrad, and now coming back to work is like coming back home every day. I love coming to school every day and it really is the dream.”
Students that are lucky enough to learn from Dr. Teel will recall her as much more than simply a professor. She is a mentor and a friend. Dr. Teel loves each of her students as if they were her own. Her commitment to helping her students succeed beyond the classroom is one of the cornerstones of her teaching philosophy. In fact, when speaking with a different alumna, she mentioned to me that she was having dinner to catch up with Dr. Teel before she left Auburn—a testament to the strong, lasting relationships Dr. Teel fosters with her former students.
Dr. Teel’s career and life leave a lasting impact on those surrounded by her. She gives her all each day and encourages her students to do the same. She transforms academia to make learning more than just memorizing the information for an exam. A lifetime that is so intertwined with apparel and textiles has produced a true Auburn woman and a much loved professor.
