• Successfully Marketing Family Science Programs in Shifting Economic Times
  Presented by: Suzanne R. Smith, Raeann R. Hamon

• Changing Practices in Evaluating Teaching: Impact of a Shifting Economy
  Presented by: J. Elizabeth Miller, Susan Bowers, Peter Seldin

• HDFS Undergraduate Trajectories: Perspectives on the Current Economy
  Presented by: Caitlin Bailey, Bethany Willis Hepp, Michael Sturm, Jr., Kelley Perkins, Karen Doneker Mancini, Amanda Rich

Abstracts

Successfully Marketing Family Science Programs in Shifting Economic Times

Presented by: Suzanne R. Smith, Raeann R. Hamon

 Marketing Family Science Programs has long been a difficult task due to a lack of identity in the field. Add to that the current economic climate and it becomes even more important to have highly effective and cost efficient marketing strategies for our programs. This presentation will review findings from a national study which indicate the wisdom of targeting marketing efforts at the college level, educating our current majors to be advocates for our programs, and having high quality departmental web pages as effective means of marketing in difficult economic times.

Changing Practices in Evaluating Teaching: Impact of a Shifting Economy

Presented by: J. Elizabeth Miller, Susan Bowers, Peter Seldin

A key element in improving the teaching of family science is effective evaluation of performance. To learn what policies and practices are in actual use today and how they have changed over the past years, the presenters conducted a national study. By using the same questionnaire used in 1999 in a similar study, a direct comparison of results found important and surprising shifts.  Under growing financial pressure, institutions have altered their focus in evaluating teaching. Significant changes in relative importance have been noted in student ratings, classroom observation, self-assessment and teaching portfolios. Research findings / implications will be discussed.

HDFS Undergraduate Trajectories: Perspectives on the Current Economy

Presented by: Caitlin Bailey, Bethany Willis Hepp, Michael Sturm, Jr., Kelley Perkins, Karen Doneker Mancini, Amanda Rich

This proposal focuses on the experiences of undergraduate seniors as they move toward graduation and plan for the future.  Specifically, this proposal will examine the experiences of HDFS majors as they consider post graduation plans in the context of a tumultuous economy.  The poster will present data gathered from an open-ended survey of HDFS seniors prior to graduation.  Data presented will highlight student perceptions of the current economy and job market, job and academic prospects, and barriers to employment.  Additionally, the presentation will share ways programs can support students as they transition beyond graduation in the current economic context.