1. Ellen Swallow
Richards
Founder of the
American Home
Economics
Association
(1909) renamed
The American
Association of
Family &
Consumer
Science (1994)
This interdisciplinary approach is essential because the
challenges of everyday life are not one dimensional
Family and consumer sciences (FCS) is the comprehensive body of
skills, research, and knowledge that helps people make informed
decisions about their well being, relationships, and resources to
achieve optimal quality of life. The field represents many areas,
including human development, personal and family finance,
housing and interior design, food science, nutrition, and wellness,
textiles and apparel, and consumer issues.
Core Values
★ Believe in the family as a fundamental
unit of society.
★ Embrace diversity and values all
people.
★ Support life-long learning and diverse
scholarship.
★ Exemplify integrity and ethical
behavior.
★ Seek new ideas and initiatives and
embraces change.
★ Promote an integrative and holistic
approach, aligned with the FCS body of
knowledge, to support professionals
who work with individuals, families,
and communities.
Key Changes In History
★ Researched and specified descriptive labeling on textiles.
★ Advocated for the National School Lunch Act, providing nutritious lunches at school
★ Created and taught about food handling and preparation reducing spoilage and contamination of food.
★ Encouraged the movement for preschool education.
★ Introduced in depth studies about household sanitation.
★ Changed the policy to include enriched flour
★ Created a standard size for clothing
★ Brought emergency feeding, nutrition, food, and clothing conservation programs to those in need.
★ Taught “life skills” such as, personal finance, nutrition and dietetics, human and child development, and
housing and interior design.
★ Established Home Economics and FCS programs in college and universities.
★ Advocated for the advancement of "No Child Left Behind."
Vision
Individuals, families, and
communities are achieving
optimal quality of life
assisted by competent,
caring professionals whose
expertise is continually
updated through the
American Association of
Family & Consumer
Sciences (AAFCS).
Mission
The mission of the American
Association of Family &
Consumer Sciences is to provide
leadership and support for
professionals whose work assists
individuals,families,and
communities in making informed
decisions about their well-being,
relationships, and resources to
achieve optimal quality of life.
Brief Timeline of FCS
Isabella Mary Beeton wrote the first book to educate women to lead a higher
quality of life called Book of Household Management. Written towards the middle
class in the 1800s.
Catherine Beecher wrote two books A Treatise on Domestic Economy and A
Study in American Domesticity in the 1840’s - Lead to her success as a national
authority on domestic well-being and wrote the book The American Woman’s
Home in 1869 - lead to her first attempt to declare a professional status for
homemaking.
1862 Morrill Land-Grant Act passed and sold federal lands to the states to be
sold to support colleges of Agriculture and allowed the common person to be
educated. Passed by President Abraham Lincoln.
1868 Ellen Swallow Richards admitted to Vassar College in Poughkeepskie, NY
1870 Ellen Swallow Richards admitted to MIT to study Chemistry
1871 Mary Welch teaches the first Home Economics class at Iowa State College
1890 2nd Morrill Act passed allowing funding for African-American college
students
1893 Columbian Exposition in Chicago - Ellen Richards and Mary Hinman Abel
set up a kitchen model where it demonstrated “the application of science to the
preparation of food.”
1894 Ellen Richards starts the first Lunch Program in Boston
1899 First Lake Placid Conference held by Ellen Richards, Melvil & Anna
Dewey. Adopted the name “Home Economics” to this field. Classification of
knowledge within the Dewey Decimal System created by Melvil Dewey.
1908 Formation of the American Home Economics Association
1914 Smith-Lever Act to provide funding for Home Economics into the U.S.
Department of Agriculture Cooperative Extension programs
1917 Smith-Hughes Act added Home Economics as part of vocational education
and the American Dietetic Association founded
1925 Childcare recognized as a key element of Home Economics
1961 Accreditation of undergraduate programs in Home Economics begin
1973 roles of women in Home Economics challenged for restricting them as
homemakers
1993 Scottsdale Conference Held
1994 Name changed to Family & Consumer Science
www.aafcs.org/
Trends In FCS
● Aging Population
● Increasing Diversity
● Global Economy
● Advanced Technological Changes
● Work/Life Balance Issues
● Changes in Marriage & Families
Family
Services
Nutrition
Hospitality
Textiles
&
Apparel
Interior
Design
Personal
&
Family
Finance
Human
Development