Our college is founded on the visionary leadership of many remarkable women — from Ellen Swallow Richards, a pioneer in the home economics movement more than 100 years ago, to Purdue’s own Virginia Meredith and Mary Matthews. This year’s Felker Leadership Series will celebrate the contributions of such women as well as their current day counterparts. “Women in Leadership: Honoring the Past, Inspiring the Future” will be held on campus Friday, April 11 from 8:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Following Felker, Purdue University will hold an inauguration for President France A. Córdova.

Our Felker speakers...

Tami Longaberger is a name synonymous with leadership. She is chair and CEO of The Longaberger Company, America’s premier maker of handcrafted baskets and one of the largest direct-selling organizations in the country. Leading the company since 1999, Longaberger has led the 3,000-person organization through significant growth, product diversification, facilities expansion, and new technologies. A respected leader and active participant in international and national affairs, she was appointed by President Bush in May 2005 to chair the National Women’s Business Council.

CFS alumna Sally Brown is founder and president of Ambassadors for Children, an organization that provides meaningful travel experiences with global volunteer opportunities to help children in need around the world. She started in the travel industry more than 30 years ago as a flight attendant, and today leads a company that has assisted more than 100,000 children and distributed more than $5 million in aid.

CFS alumna Joyce Beery Miles will portray Ellen Swallow Richards, providing a glimpse into her life as a student at Vassar and MIT, a chemist in the laboratory, and during the last decade of her professional life. Joyce is currently traveling the country in 2008–09 to portray Richards as part of the Centennial Celebration of the American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences.

I invite you to attend this year’s Felker Leadership Series — it promises to be a truly unique event.

Dennis Savaiano
Dean

The Military Family Research Institute (MFRI) initiated the Challenging Journeys study in December. Through this longitudinal study, MFRI researchers hope to gain a more comprehensive understanding of families experiencing military deployment. To gather data, they invited National Guard members of the 76th Brigade Combat Team and their families to participate in an online survey. Survey questions focused on the backgrounds, experiences, needs, and concerns of each military member and their family. The 76th Brigade Combat Team is currently training in Fort Stewart, Georgia, and will deploy to Iraq in March. Visit the MFRI Web site.

Indiana is rolling out a new child care quality rating system with the help of Jim Elicker, associate professor and director of early childhood programs in Child Development and Family Studies. Professor Elicker will be evaluating the system, called Paths to Quality, to see if it does improve the level of child care in the state. “This system is intended to do for child care providers what a four-star rating can do for a hotel,” Elicker says. Read more about Paths to Quality.

Apparel design students are finishing up their design collections to be featured in the annual Spring Fashion Show on Saturday, March 29. The show “runAway” is hosted by the Purdue Fashion Association and apparel design and technology students. Tickets go on sale February 14 for two shows at 1:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. in Ross-Ade Pavilion. For show and ticket information, visit the Spring Fashion Show Web site.

The Child Development Laboratory School and the Ben and Maxine Miller Child Learning Center both measure up against new, more robust accreditation standards from the National Association for the Education of Young Children. Both schools were among the first in the nation to be accredited under the new system. They serve as practicum and internship sites for Child Development and Family Studies students, research sites for faculty, and model programs for Indiana early educators. Read more about NAEYC accreditation.

CFS alumna Joyce Beery Miles, BS ’65, has been researching the history of home economics in anticipation of the 100th anniversary of the American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences. She has completed extensive research on home economics pioneer Ellen Swallow Richards (1842–1911) and her contributions to the home economics movement more than 100 years ago. Visit the Home Economics History and Ellen Swallow Richards section of the CFS Web site.

Child Development and Family Studies
Doug Sprenkle, professor and director of the Marriage and Family Therapy Program, was elected to the national offices of treasurer and board member of the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy.

Consumer Sciences and Retailing
Sugato Chakravarty, professor, has been named interim department head. He replaces Rick Widdows, who is currently on sabbatical.

Sandra Liu, associate professor, has been selected to Purdue’s Entrepreneurial Leadership Academy, which was established to bring together business innovators and enhance entrepreneurship ideas in the classroom.

February 15: Purdue on the Road (Scottsdale, Arizona)
February 29: Boilermaker Ball
March 29: Spring Fashion Show “runAway”
March 31: Purdue on the Road (Washington, DC)
April 5: HTM Black Tie Dinner
April 11: Felker Leadership Series
April 11: CFS Awards Dinner
April 12: CFS Alumni Board Meeting
April 12–13: Spring Fest
April 12–13: Gala Week
April 23: CFS “Celebrating Your Diversity” Fair

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