New Faculty
Myung-Hee from Korea

by Mary Ann Reese

Ask Assistant Professor Myung-Hee (May) Chae what kinds of apparel American women tennis players prefer or whether recreational snowboarders should wear helmets,  and she can rattle off the figures.

The newest textiles and design faculty member for the University of Idaho Margaret Ritchie School of Family and Consumer Sciences, this South Korean native studied functional design for athletic wear and protective equipment enroute to a trio of college degrees accumulated in the United States during the past decade.

More than 50 percent of women tennis players, umpires, and coaches that she interviewed at a United States Tennis Association women’s pro tournament in Minnesota in 2002 spent $100 to more than $750 a year on tennis outfits. Most preferred two-piece tennis wear, 43 percent favored skirts, and another 43 percent shorts. White and black were the most popular colors, and Nike and Adidas the most popular brands. Some 17 percent of women interviewed wanted pockets to hold tennis balls.

As for snowboarders, while professionals must wear helmets, very few recreational snowboarders wear head protection  But perhaps they should. A five-year study from Niigata, Japan, recorded 634 snowboarding-related head injuries,  most of them due to falling backward on beginner or intermediate slopes. Most injuries were to the back of the head. Four were fatal. None of those injured wore a helmet.

Original designs combine Western, Asian motifs

You’d think Chae must be a jock, with her avid interest in athletic wear, but, no, she laughs. “Not at all. However, I do love watching all kinds of sports—especially Olympic games.” And athletic wear is only part of her focus. 

She’s also interested in any functional professional wear—from doctor’s coats to astronauts’ flight suits. But her first love is high fashion, especially mixing Western and Asian themes. One evening gown she designed was accepted in the            International Textile and Apparel Association competition this year.

Raised in Seoul, one of the world’s largest cities, with a population of 10 million, 23 million if you count greater Seoul, Chae wasn’t totally floored by her arrival in small-town Moscow. But she admits to being wistful that the nearest Korean restaurant is a four-hour drive away.

The middle of three children, Chae followed her older sister, Kay, to Florida for studies. She was encouraged by her dad, a certified public accountant in Seoul, and her mom, who works with him.

Chae was in Moscow interviewing for her UI faculty position last April 16 when the Virginia Tech massacre took place. She had  completed her doctoral degree there four months earlier and was teaching fashion illustration and flat-pattern making there.

“It was very tragic, very sad,” says Chae of the event that killed 32 students and faculty and injured many more.  But, she says of herself and her friends, “Somehow we  feel stronger because we have come through this together.” 

Contact Myung-Hee Chae.

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