Moms in school continuing education programs for women, 1960-1978 /

by Troughton, Marlo das

MOMS IN SCHOOL: CONTINUING EDUCATION PROGRAMS FOR WOMEN, 1960-1978 By Marlo das Dores Troughton This paper analyzes programs developed between 1960 and 1978 for non-traditional women in North American institutions of higher education. Operating on the assumption that women quit school or work upon marriage, educators justified the need for programs through a life-span model which proposed that women pursue individual goals when responsibilities at home lessened. Educational programs were developed specifically for women long out of school and included special seminars, guidance counseling, and on-campus childcare. Increased public awareness about women’s roles, epitomized by Kennedy’s President’s Commission on the Status of Women and Betty Friedan’s The Feminine Mystique, both published in 1963, were important in the development of other programs nationally. Four programs are analyzed to illustrate how different institutions responded to changing awareness of women’s lives. Additionally, the experiences and motivations of women are highlighted to illustrate how they understood their lives in context with the programs they attended. Moms in School: Continuing Education Programs for Women, 1960 – 1978 A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of Miami University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Department of History by Marlo das Dores Troughton Miami University Oxford, Ohio 2006 Advisor Mary E. Frederickson Reader Allan M. Winkler Reader Elspeth Brown