Impact Opportunities: The Home Economics Centennial Endowment

For over 100 years, home economics has continued to shift with evolving changes in society, becoming more specialized in some areas and branching out into new fields. Now, the programs descending from the original home economics at Stevens Point Normal and continuing through Central State Teachers College, Wisconsin State College, and Wisconsin State University, prepare students to become registered dieticians, design functional and healthy work environments, and guide high school students and families as family living specialists. These programs would not exist without the pioneering work of the first mothers who created the field of home economics.

The Home Economics Centennial Endowment fund was created to forge bonds with distinguished professionals who will work with our students and faculty to face new challenges. Through the endowment we have made in possible for some of the best professionals in the world to form in- depth relationships with our students and faculty in family and consumer education, dietetics, and interior architecture. These special relationships enrich our students, expand our curricula, and spotlight our home economics history.

Dietetics is an interdisciplinary field, often spilling over to agriculture, politics, advertising, business, chemistry, bacteriology, global issues, genetically modified organisms, popular culture, food science and so forth. With financial assistance from the Home Economics Centennial Endowment for Outstanding Professionals, we have made it possible for exciting, cutting-edge professionals to spend a month on campus providing a total immersion course for students, workshops and brown bag discussions with faculty, research opportunities for nutrition graduate students, and advice about expanding the curriculum into news-breaking areas.

Family & consumer education graduates have extensive professional involvement with families in our diverse society. They work with youths and adults to improve conditions within the family, in the workplace, and in the community. Family and consumer education professionals in all of these settings help others develop the skills needed to address the complex issues facing families today.

With the funds from the Home Economics Centennial Endowment, we have created supervised student practicum experiences with outstanding practitioners in UW-Extension or community agencies in one or more of those challenge areas. These focused practica give our students strong specialties, experience with real-life problems, and connections to outstanding professionals.

Interior architecture students gain exposure to design and architecture firms in the Midwest through short field trips focused on the professionals' work. With funding from the Home Economics Centennial Endowment, we invite an outstanding practitioner to spend as much as a week on campus working with the juniors and seniors on their capstone projects.

With yearly access to these super-stars, our students enter the design world with better knowledge and understanding of new directions anticipated, and personal acquaintance with some of the biggest names making news in the field. We are convinced that this exposure will assist our students both personally and professionally.

Contact us about making your own gift to the Home Economics Centennial Campaign.

Donors to the Home Economics Centennial include:

Founder ($100,000+)

  • Bernadine Peterson

Benefactor ($50,000 - $99,999)

  • Ethel V. Hill

Sponsor ($25,000 - $49,999)

  • Mary L. & John Heisler

Partner ($10,000 - $24,999)

  • Janice S. (Gray) Albertson
  • Mary Ann Baird
  • Pam Blenker Jewell & Peter Blenker
  • Estate of Orthula C. Doescher
  • Agnes Jones
  • James R. & Lynne Linowski
  • Joan DeGuire North & Storm North

Gifts of $1,000 - $9,999

  • Susan (Mertens) & Thomas Arnold
  • Blenker Developments
  • Doris V. Davis
  • Fay (Finch) Clifford
  • Liola V. (Chemel) Carey
  • B.J. (Gustafson) & Tom Cassidy
  • Mary K. Croft
  • Eleanore M. (Danber) & R. Craft Dryer
  • Mary Kay (Pearson) Hayward
  • Kathleen A. (Braunschweig) Hetzel
  • Barbara J. Mihm
  • Donna L. (Thompson) & Ken Milius
  • Joan DeGuire North & Storm North
  • Judie M. (Glodowski) & Richard J. Pfiffner
  • Floy E. Salter
  • Jasia (Kitkowski) Steinmetz
  • Nancy M. (Ripp) Werho Keller

Gifts of $100 - $999

  • Cynthia (Boeckman) Bowhay
  • Roberta (Sparks) Brown
  • Phyllis J. (Jarnick) Calder
  • Ethel (Florence) Christenson
  • Jean (Droeger) & Daniel Cotrone
  • Mary (Lemberger) & Dennis Gruenewald
  • Ardyce (Bagnael) Hebal
  • Susan (Wahleithner) & Michael Hickey
  • Alice Hiller
  • Elizabeth J. (Maki) Kesse
  • Mary A. (Eagon) Jacquart
  • Lillian (LaMarche) Korzilius
  • Monica (Gill) & Jerry La Fleur
  • Mari (Bertsch) & John Mackenbach
  • Jane (Viergutz) & Robert Menghini
  • Anita (Barsness) & Edward Metzen
  • Nancy Nehring
  • Jean (Hohenstein) & Robert Neufeld
  • Scott Niedermeyer & Assoc.
  • Doris J. (Ockerlander) See
  • Katherine & Richard Swiontek
  • Bernadelle I. (Polivka) Toser
  • Carolyn (Hanson) & Gregg Watson
  • Margaret & Clark Wunsch
  • Gail (Grettenberg) & Richard Yest

Gifts of $99 or less

  • Illinois Tool Works Foundation
  • Jansport
  • Lois (Feit) & Henry Bauers
  • Jean (Jahnke) Bernicky
  • Lori (Sot) Bicek
  • Lois (Busse) & Vernon Biel
  • Judith (Schellpfeffer) & Gordon Boeck
  • Pamela (Larson) Bootz
  • Lynn Borski
  • Audrey & Robert Brandt
  • Judy & David Brose
  • Lorraine (Meyer) & Eugene Brueggeman
  • Pauline (Ainsworth) & Robert Buchner
  • Elizabeth (Haberkorn) Burnett
  • Kay (Hillery) & David Daley
  • Carrie (Vandekieft) & Curtis Downes
  • Lila (Ablard) Ebert
  • Jane (Kawatski) & John Egan
  • Wayne Eggleston
  • Judy (Lanser) & Joseph Fenzel
  • Charlotte (Gould) & Patrick Flanagan
  • Kathleen (Ritchie) & Gary Frank
  • Ann (Gosz) & Dean Gatz
  • Mary Ann (Riske) & Jerry Genson
  • Dolores (Newhall) Glaman
  • Marsha (Vick) & Steven Goetzman
  • Elaine (Becker) & Percival Hanson
  • Carolyn (Klaehn) Heisey
  • Marie (Prondzinski) & Gregory Helminiak
  • Maria (Bink) & W. Randolph Hennings
  • Judy Herrold
  • Donna (Lang) & John Heschke
  • Kathleen Hetzel
  • Rebecca Holub
  • Marcella (Mayer) & Dennis Howard
  • Susan & Thomas Howe
  • Julie (Forseth) & Kerry Hull
  • Alta L. (Douglass) Jacobs
  • Lillian & Dean Jacobs
  • Elaine & Thomas James-DeVries
  • Kathleen (Cory) & Steven Cory Johnson
  • Barbara & Donald Johnson
  • Michelle (Ziemer) & Gary Johnson
  • Schawn (Bartlett) & Tim Jubert
  • Laura (Carlson) & Kevin Kawleski
  • Ellen (Felician) Kiedrowski
  • Nancy Kilby
  • Denise Kilsdonk
  • Crystal (Twist) & Forrest Kitchen
  • Kelly (Carl) & Mark Kovatch
  • Beth (Bartelt) & Daniel Kraeger
  • Faden F. Fulleylove-Krause
  • Paula Kurtzweil Walter
  • Kristin (Sadogierski) Kwak
  • Susan & Daniel Laplant
  • Ann & Jac Larsen
  • Denise (Hayes) Larson
  • Bonnie (Schultz) & John Lartz
  • Dawn (Buntman) & Thomas Leaver
  • Hedy (Bjork) & Douglas Lemieux
  • Cynthia Loechler
  • Peter Martin
  • Suzanne (Ruef) & Brian Marx
  • Colleen Mateske
  • Susan (Acker) & Jim McGinley
  • Amy (Beyersdorf) & Mark Mckenzie
  • Ann (Held) & Ludwig Miller
  • Rose Mary & Dean Muller
  • Kathleen (Greenfield) & David Palmstein
  • Dorothy (Scharf) Parker
  • Alice (Wagner) & Charles Parr
  • Patricia (Jones) & Gordon J Parsons
  • Judi (Schantz) Pence
  • Ethelyn (Olsen) & Roger Peterson
  • Sandra (Popelka) & Richard Phillips
  • Jean (Breunig) & Peter Pittner
  • Ann (Klemp) & Kenneth Reckelberg
  • Kathryn & Rodney Reinke
  • Julie & Steve Rodger
  • Kathy & Tom Rutkowski
  • Moufid Said
  • Mary (Huot) & Chad Schittone
  • Debra (Joski) & Albert Schmidt
  • Lisa (Lubeley) & Donald Schneider
  • Nancy (Behnke) & Dennis Schultz
  • Gloria (Heimbruch) & Louis Schultz
  • Kristine & Dean Schweiger
  • Barbara (Edlebeck) & Steven Sheldon
  • Radine (McIntee) & George Sherman
  • Nancy (Roberts) & Waitman Slaughter
  • Nona (Grotzke) & Harold Smith
  • Karen (Milheiser) & Paul Spaude
  • Claudia Standorf
  • Lori (Haney) & Larry Stengren
  • Doreen (Short) & Don Stewart
  • Jerelene & Michael Stutzman
  • Elizabeth (Gregorich) Tarabek
  • Margaret (Dorn) & Bruce Tessner
  • Marcella (Fuehrer) & Robert Thomson
  • Gail (Storm) & Eugene Tubbs
  • Beth (Harrison) Turner
  • Ava (Seiy) Ulness
  • Paula (Kurtzweil) Walter
  • Therese (Swanson) Waterson
  • Lisbeth (Britton) & Mark Whitefoot
  • Kay (Deboer) Wilcott
  • Crystal (Damrow) & Sherman Williams
  • Cris (Nyswonger) & Mark Winkler
  • Carla (Lipp) & Steven Woods
  • Bob & Marilyn Worth
  • Virginia (Bricco) & Edward Wurzer
  • Colette (Charler) & Curtis Wyttenbach
  • Lisa Zdroik