If you’re of a certain age, you may remember home economics as an elective you took in high school when you couldn’t find anything “easier” to take. If you could sew a button, boil water, or knew where to place your knife and fork you could usually get by.
But you would have missed the point of what home economics and now consumer and family science is all about. It was, in fact, a revolutionary way to define, elevate, and change the role that many women played in the later 19th and early twentieth centuries as housewives and homemakers. It serves today as an evolving discipline, providing new roles and opportunities for young men and women that are shaping both personal and professional lives.
To appreciate the role home economics has played in all this, it’s important to first understand a little bit about its history, some of its early pioneers, and a few of the congressional acts that helped set the stage for what is now a prominently re-emerging discipline in understanding the relationship between individuals, families, communities, and their environment.
One of the first to champion the economics of running a home was Catherine Beecher, sister to Harriet Beecher Stowe. Both were leaders in mid-19th century North America in promoting the education of women and recognizing the work many do, as “domestic science”.
That science gained further traction with the passage of the Morrill Act of 1862 which gave land grant colleges the right to promote more “liberal and practical education for the health and welfare of the industrial classes.” In doing so, it opened opportunities to educate farm wives in running their households as their husbands were being educated in agricultural methods and processes. Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, Illinois, Minnesota, and Michigan were early leaders in offering domestic science programs for women.
Domestic science
Ellen Swallow Richards was another early proponent of domestic science. The first woman to attend Massachusetts Institute of Technology and their first female instructor, Richards founded the American Home Economics Association in 1909, known today as American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences.
AHEA was instrumental in winning two crucial pieces of legislation that allowed home economists to establish formal niches for research and teaching within institutions of higher education. The Smith-Lever Act of 1914 and the Smith-Hughes Act of 1917 provided funding to expand demonstration work in rural communities and to develop and teach a home economics curriculum on the campuses of most state land-grant colleges. This legislation contributed to the creation of the Office of Home Economics, which grew into the Bureau of Home Economics, at the US Department of Agriculture during the early 20th century.
As professional home economics grew, it had two major goals: to teach women to assume their new roles as modern consumers, and to communicate homemakers’ needs to manufacturers and political leaders. Over much of the 20th century, the development of the profession progressed from its origins as an educational movement to its identity as a source of consumer expertise between world wars to its virtual disappearance by the 1970s.
So, what happened between then and now? It fell out of favor.
A victim of image and the social revolution. Look up “homemaker” in the dictionary and it still conjures up visions of someone who wears an apron, spends their time cooking and cleaning, then sews and makes crafts in their spare time.
It wasn’t until 1994 that various organizations, including the American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences, moved to adapt the new term “family and consumer science” to reflect the fact that the field covers so much more than home life and wellness.
In addition to consumer science, the field includes nutrition, food preparation, parenting, early childhood education, family economics, human development, interior design, textiles, apparel design, and covers topics such as sexual education and fire prevention among others.
Family and consumer science
The emphasis today is on serving individuals and families living in society throughout their lifespan. Both family and consumer science and homemakers have come a long way in providing services, assistance, and opportunities that benefit all ages, genders, and locations.
The Kentucky Extension Homemakers Association (KEHA) plays a major role in doing just that. As a volunteer organization, it works to improve the quality of life for families and communities through leadership development, volunteer service, and education. Established in 1932, the organization was developed in cooperation with the University of Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service.
Across the state, county extension agents for Family and Consumer Sciences work closely with KEHA members and clubs to provide educational programming and coordinate community activities.
Statewide, KEHA boasts over 16,000 members, reporting more than 600,000 volunteer hours annually. Collectively they provide a value of more than $10 million to Kentucky.
In addition to providing opportunities for socialization, comradery and engagement they offer programs that educate members and the public about topics including: parenting and grandparenting, fall prevention, diabetes, ovarian cancer, financial decision-making, art appreciation, empowering women and effective leadership.
If you’re a homemaker, take a moment to pat yourself on the back and say thank you to all those who started the revolution before you.
Jeff Rubin is an advocate and adviser on community and aging issues, having spent over 20 years as a director and facilitator of community service programs at the local, state and national levels. An advocate for “Age-friendly” and “Livable” communities, Mr. Rubin is currently working to advance these initiatives statewide in Kentucky and invites your comments, involvement, and support. He can be reached at Jeffrubin515@gmail.com.
