How Did Home Economics Students See Themselves?

Home economics students in the early years were thrilled to be at Cornell and felt privileged to have access to higher education, since most women did not have such an opportunity. Home economics faculty and students created a supportive community of women that fostered connection and loyalty among students and alumnae. Yet women students found it hard to achieve an equal place with men at Cornell, and they struggled for equality both in and out of the classroom.

As a college education became more common for women, home economics students began to think of themselves and their relationships with others differently. By the late l930s, they assumed leadership roles on campus. They also became more integrated into the life of the university, took a wider array of classes, and expanded their horizons beyond homemaking to a variety of professional careers. In the postwar era however, the ideal of traditional femininity still played some role in college activities and lingered in students' ideas about their future roles. In conjunction with the growing attention to women's issues in society at large, by the late 1960s, students in home economics showed a new and broader understanding of the value of their Cornell education.

The Character of Cornell Women

As college women were not the norm, questions sometimes arose concerning their character and morality. In this 1908 letter, Martha Van Rensselaer responded to a parent in defense of the undergraduate women in home economics.

Cornell men with whom we are acquainted tell us that the social and moral tone among Cornell girls is bad. As they put it, "Cornell girls are common."
Mrs. Lucy Roberts

I am afraid I can not agree with young men. I would say that there are here as everywhere some common girls and I should say that there are also many very fine ones. I may say that there are many young men who object to the attendance of the girls at this institution. ... Socially, the girls make their own places. ... So far as I have known, the girls are not dissatisfied with their social condition here.
Martha Van Rensselaer

SEDOWA

SEDOWA (Scholarship, Enthusiasm, and Dignity of Women in Agriculture) was an organization established in 1915 for women in the College of Agriculture. The club's aim was to promote the highest ideals of "purposeful womanhood."

Frigga Fylgae

Frigga Fylgae, an organization founded in 1908, was dedicated to promoting good fellowship among the women of the College of Agriculture, enabling them to act together, and furthering their interests on campus. In 1925, when the College of Home Economics was established, Frigga Fylgae became the Home Economics Club.

Sarah Steinman and Eleanor Roosevelt

Sarah Steinman '39, President of the Women's Self-Government Association, seated with Eleanor Roosevelt during the First Lady's visit to campus, 1939.

Charm School

In 1946, a six-week charm school in the College included a series of lectures on cosmetics, fashion budgeting, and proper fashions for college women. As shown above, a "Sense and Sensibility" fashion show accompanied a lecture given by Sarah Blanding, Dean of the College of Home Economics.

Life Magazine Article

In 1948, Life magazine showed a snapshot of six Cornell seniors and their post-graduation goals. Sylvia Kilbourne, '48, was portrayed in this article as a "campus leader who prefers to get married." Courses in the Department of Family Life, such as Professor Lemo Rockwood's class on marriage, prepared students for family relationships.