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Catherine Beecher
Catherine Beecher plays a huge role for all of us students in the field of family and consumer sciences. She wrote "A Treatise on Domestic Economy", the first family and consumer science textbook recognized by the Department of Education. -
Ellen Swallow Richards
Ellen Swallow Richards is THE history of family and consumer sciences; it all started with her. She fought for women recognition in the science, specifically chemistry, world. She then grew and expanded her knowledge. She taught and led meetings, spreading awareness to many foundations of FACS, such as nutrition, science, family, and people skills. -
W.O. Atwater
W.O. Atwater is credited the title of "Father of Nutrition." In family and consumer sciences, nutrition and food science is a huge factor. Without food, one of the very basics of Maslow's hierarchy of needs wouldn't be met, leading to struggles in other areas. -
Morrill Act of 1862
This is a huge foundation to the beginning of FACS. It designated a parcel of land in each state to be used for establishing a university that would extend education upon agricultural, industrial, and domestic economy needs. This founded the start of what's known as "home economics." -
Land Grant Universities
Built under the Morrill Act of 1862, these universities were specifically to extend educational chances that promoted agricultural, industrial, and domestic economy. -
Lake Placid Meeting
In 1909, Ellen Richards (the founder of AAFCS), met with a small group of women and men in Lake Placid, New York. There this group formed American Home Economics Association. -
American Home Economics Association
The American Home Economics Association is formed and becomes a professional association for family and consumer sciences. -
Name Change Process
On January 1, 1910, American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences got its name change charter. With the growing and changing of the times, a new name was needed to represent everything that is family and consumer sciences. -
Kappa Omicron Nu and Phi Upsilon Omicron
These were established societies that gave recognition and scholarship opportunities to family and consumer sciences. -
Smith-Lever Act of 1914
This historical piece of legislation, under President Woodrow Wilson's, established the Cooperative Extension Service. This is important for FACS history because it incorporated the spreading teach of Family and Consumer Sciences. Agents all over answer basic questions of textiles, nutrition, family, money, home life, and much more. -
Smith Hughes Act of 1917
Following the Smith-Lever Act of 1914, this act was the initial one that set vocational school apart from regularly taught high school curriculum. It started the widely popular funded vocational school, set apart from FACS education. -
National School Lunch Program
Family and Consumer Sciences and what Ellen Richards advocated and supported for years- the start of a school lunch program.This federally assisted program provides low cost, well balanced, and nutritious meals to students of public and nonprofit private schools. -
Perkins Act
Many years after the Smith Hughes Act, this act further supported vocational school programs in both secondary and post secondary education. -
Name Change
The organization that Ellen Richards originally created, known as the American Home Economics Association, officially changed its name to the American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences. -
UCA Name Change
Much like AHEA changing to AAFCS, so did the University of Central Arkansas. UCA officially recognized, much like other colleges, and switched the name campus wide.
