EXHIBITS
Women Leaders of the College of Family Life: Modernizing the Program
Modernizing the Program
From the 1960s on, leaders of the Family Life program have guided the education of their students to become increasingly relevant in a rapidly changing world.
When Phyllis R. Snow became dean of the College in 1962, she instituted a variety of changes aimed at professionalizing and modernizing the program in line with the social changes of the 1960s. Dean Snow earned her Bachelor's degree in Home Economics in 1935 from the University of Utah. She went on to later get her Master's degree and Ph.D. from Cornell University. [1] Her independence in this era was remarkable as a symbol of the growing professionalization of the Family Life program.
Dean Snow emphasized the three-prong approach of the College: the importance of resident instruction, research, and extension in the program in order to better prepare students for professional careers. [2] During her tenure, Snow renovated the Family Life building, creating a professional food service program by adding new technologies like dishwashers and microwaves to the kitchens. [3] Additionally, she built the Child Development Laboratory to study the education, parenting, and psychology of children in a more academic way. [4] The Clothing and Textiles Department started preparing students for professional careers in fashion design.
Finally, in 1976, Dean Snow consolidated the five small departments of the College into three major departments. This made the College more cohesive and productive. [5] Under Dean Snow, the College of Family Life embraced the new era by embracing modernization in the department. Dean Snow’s leadership was key to creating the College’s focus on professionalization that exists to this day.