Department of family social science

Family Social Science was established at the University of Minnesota in 1965, after previous incarnations as Home Management and Family Relations and then Home Management and Family Living within the College of Agriculture. In 1970, Family Social Science became one of four departments of the new College of Home Economics within the Institute of Agriculture. Richard Hey was named the first chairman of the Department of Family Social Science.

Research in the Department of Family Social Science focused on making a systematic examination of family life through research. The Department offered three undergraduate programs in Consumer Aspects of Household Equipment, Family Relationships, and General Home Economics and included study leading to master’s and doctoral degrees.

At the June 7, 1990, Board of Regents Educational Planning and Policy Committee meeting, a proposal was presented to change the name of the College of Home Economics to the College of Human Ecology. The proposal stated that a majority of faculty supported the change, which was said to be more descriptive and inclusive and better suited for a professionalizing field and to help meet challenges in student recruitment. The Committee recommended the approval of the name change, and at their July 13, 1990, meeting, the Board of Regents approved the name change.

As part of a system-wide reorganization (“Strategic Positioning” and later “Transforming the U”), announced in September 2004 by President Robert Bruininks, the number of colleges on the Twin Cities campus was reduced by three. The Department of Family Social Science was integrated with the School of Social Work and the academic units of the College of Education and Human Development “to create a new, expanded college dedicated to education, training, and human development across the lifespan.”

At their June 10, 2005, meeting, the Regents approved the recommendations for the strategic positioning process. On July 1, 2006, the Department of Family Social Science and the School of Social Work were integrated with units of the College of Education and Human Development to create a new, expanded college, and the College of Human Ecology ceased to exist as an independent collegiate structure.

As an academic department in the new College of Education and Human Development, Family Social Science focused on studying the family as a system interacting with its environment. Faculty research activities covered a wide range of social, psychological, and economic factors, with implications for family education, family policy, and family therapy.

Department Heads