Fashion and Textile programs closing in schools relates to the closing of fabric, textile and quilt shops.

I am a retired Family and Consumer Sciences teacher.  I taught classes in several of the FACS components.  My favorite courses were textile and sewing, and housing and interior design. 

There were occasions I had to do a great deal of wheeling and dealing to keep my sewing classes alive in the school that I worked at, especially the Advanced Sewing course that I taught. 

This winter, two things happened that made me realize that the decline in the quilting / fabric textile industry truly is related to the decline of sewing / textile programs junior high schools and high schools across the United States.

1          1)      Two teachers talked about their Sewing and Textiles programs being shut down to make 

                   room for different programs and subject areas in their school. 

2          2)      One of my favorite fabric companies, Free Spirit, notified consumers that they were closing                 production of their fabric lines.  It was stated that the company was going to focus on      

                   products other than fabric.  Very soon after, a private company purchased Free Spirit fabrics.               I was thrilled but it made me think about the correlation of the two. 

A bit of History background, according to my memory :-) :  Up until the late 80’s people really did sew because it was cost effective.   I sure did.  I remember digging through a pile of fabric in Menomonie, WI to make my interview outfit for my first teaching job. The cost, approximately, $9.00.  We can’t and don’t do that anymore. 

Around the same era a change came to the name Home Economics in the United States; to Family and Consumer Sciences.  (The name was officially changed during the mid-90’s)  With that, it was said that society changed too.  It was declared that students didn’t need to learn and practice sewing and cooking which led to curriculum in schools focusing on college preparation courses.  The movement of “college for everyone” began.  One of the original land grant schools, The University of Minnesota, stopped teaching food preparation and sewing to their FACS education majors.

  

Therefore, as less and less people used fabric, the prices rose due to increased production costs and the lower fabric demand. 

I am on a Facebook page for only Family and Consumer Sciences (known as FACS or FCS) professionals.  I also follow Scott Fortunoff on Facebook, A family member of the Jaftex group that purchased Free Spirit.  (Thank You!)  

In the very same week, those two FACS professionals were saddened because the programs that they built in sewing and textiles were being shut down to add the different courses to the schools curriculums.   And, Scott Fortunoff mentioned that sewers should continue to support local quilt shops and help keep them in business.  (Which I do, very well. Ha-ha) But the thing is, I have seen three amazing quilt shops close in the last 2 years, just in the Midwest.  On the Facebook page for the Kaffe Fassett Collective (Fabric designers) I would guess 70 percent of the members are over 45.  This leads to the question, “What happens when the baby boomers are no longer able to sew?”

I have always maintained that you cannot be a fashion designer if someone does not know how to put it together.  This was a pretty good argument to keep programs alive during a time when fashion was a focus in the media via reality shows.  When I was teaching, we always strayed away from a quilting course because it was labeled as crafty and didn’t relate to fashion.  Now, when I think about how much math I do every day while I quilt, I just laugh at the former criticism. 

So, what exactly is my point?  My point is that industry needs to support the Family and Consumer Sciences professionals.  Support them and their programs through word of mouth and financially if you can.  Be political, encourage states, counties and school districts to continue to teach children to sew and create; it is art, design and career oriented.  If FACS professionals and the textile industry help each other, we will help each other.  (How is that for profound?) 

And in the meantime, think about this.  Do we have a societal problem with children feeling depressed, insecure, lacking in manual dexterity, and trouble with personal socialization?  I believe the answer is yes.  So, if by chance, sewing turned to a hobby instead of a career, would that be a problem?  Life does not always have to be serious, it can be fun too.  If a student gets joy out of sewing, cool!  They are also getting; manual dexterity through cutting, math through measuring and figuring, and socializing through chatting with their neighbor while they sew and help each other.

Keeping FACS alive will help keep the textile industry alive, I promise. 

With love from your retired FACS teacher,

Jane

Me too movement, not just for the famous and wealthy.

Sometimes I hear folks wondering why women would bring up an old, past assault on them?  It is easy for me to answer.  It is because it never leaves your mind, no matter how old you are or, how long ago the assault took place.

I am an old lady with many life experiences.  

But, when I was 22 I took a teaching job in a small town.  I didn't know a soul.  It was the early 80's, most districts were facing cut backs and hiring freezes.  I had several interviews offered when I graduated from college.  I took them, no matter where they were.  And trust me, some of them were places I did not want to be.  

I had an interview in a small town in Illinois.  It was about 5 hours from the Menomonie, WI campus that I lived on.  I called two of my former roommates and asked them if they wanted to road trip with me.  I didn't have enough money but between the 3 of us, with my promise to pay back after pay day, we made it.  We had one night in a very cheap hotel and enough gas money left to get back.  

My interview went well.  They offered me the job on the spot and unlike school districts anywhere else, they cut me a $200 check for travel.  I ran out of the school to my car and friends singing, "we're in the money."  

We were excited and I was looking forward to a good career as a "Home Ec" teacher.  

I was also aware that small town living could not be as great as often reported.  My mom always said, "Be careful, you're always an outsider."  She spoke from experience.  But being the young optimistic gal that I was, I was going to conquer this place and be loved.  

My role as teacher there lasted a year.  I was never observed, I was judged and talked about and I never had a chance of survival in that tiny town.  

Later, I was told; the principal that never observed me, listened to me through the classroom speaker.  He also believed the criticism of the elder math teacher that shared the half wall to one of my classrooms.   

Besides that, I had gone out with a young teacher a couple of times, as a friend.  He was engaged but we were more friendly than one should be as a engaged man.  He was never judged for that behavior.  But I was judged by most of my coworkers.  His gossip lead to much chatter about me in the small town staff lounge; with the women on one side of the room and the men on the other.  

I noticed subtle changes but was too dumb to realize how they started and why they started.  After a night of too much beer and me passing out at his house, roomers spread.  My almost boyfriend in the community cut off all ties, and I was never treated the same by the adult male co-workers at the school.

One day a couple of the coaches asked me if I was going to go to the conference coaches meeting.  I said, "No, I am a cheer leading coach."  They talked me into it and said it was a free meal.  When I reflect on this, I know it was a game for these men.  The biology teacher said he would give me a ride.  I didn't think anything of it, as he was a married man with three daughters.  

It was a horrible experience, on the way home he pulled over on a country road that was declared a short cut and attempted to assault me.  I got away from him and started walking home.  I didn't really know where I was but I didn't care.  He pulled up and told me to get in the car.  With reluctance and fright I did, and he drove me home.  

I never told anyone but the Spanish teacher at the school.  I really didn't think that anyone would believe me because of the reputation I had, due to my so called male friend.  

Needless to say, with the speaker observations and the bad reputation I was let go from that job and left that community never to return.  

I only kept in touch with the Spanish teacher of the community.  She later reported that the horrible Biology teacher was caught having an affair with a student.  The mother found her journal filled with stories of her love for this nasty guy.  

I often wonder if I could have prevented the experience for that child if I would have reported what happened to me.  But, I don't know, I don't think that anyone in that very male administration would have ever believed me.  After all, a male basketball coach was the person that started roomers about me in the community.  

It is awful that men were/are rarely discussed or shunned when they did/do these things.  But of course woman were and are talked about and slut shamed.  I hope that things are better and different than they were in the early 80's, but I sometimes wonder if that is the case.  

We still hear about women being awful because they are temptations.  It's rarely, "He uses women and objectifies them for their looks."  

I am happy to see that women are taking their voices back and letting people know about their abuse in the work place.  I hope that we can eliminate this behavior and be happy for the change instead of angry and judgmental.  For now, it still sometimes feels like a man's world filled with "good old boys".  

I hope that my story can convince those that are skeptical about this movement, that it is real.  It is in everyday life.  I hope that people realize that saying, "Oh they were just goofing around, they were just having locker room talk", can change the direction of another persons life.  

I know it did for me.  Luckily, moving from the small town was a blessing in disguise.  But, it did prevent me from teaching again for a very long time.  It took a great deal of reflection and personal awareness to brave the system and find myself back to my love of education and working with children.  

With love from your retired FACS teacher, 

Jane

3 cheers to FACS

MAFCS Conference, Rochester, MN, February 7-9, 2018

I have not been personally involved with MAFCS in the past few years.  Which is a story for another day….but life does change in retirement.  

One thing that has not changed is how I feel about Family and Consumer Sciences and the good, as a community of teachers, we do for business and students.

My friend, Karen Smith, retired this past year.  She was wondering if I would like to team up with her on a committee with MAFCS.  I said, “Yes.” So, AWARDS team it is……

As I help organize the awards portion of our conference in Minnesota, I am reminded that we really are all heroes and all deserve rewards in our own way.

So let us give cheers to all of the retired Family and Consumer Professionals that work tirelessly to keep the organization a float.  Those that do the leg work to keep members involved and abreast to activities and actions inside and outside of the organization. 

AND cheers to the professionals and teachers that work full time and contribute to the organization through planning, mentoring, and holding offices in the organization.

And lastly, the teachers and professionals that work so hard to inspire others in their work place, often giving more time than they have, to keep family and consumer sciences relevant and inspiring.

If you have not received information about Minnesota’s annual Family and Consumer Sciences conference, here is a link:  It looks good and I know that the members planning this event are working hard to make it beneficial for our FACS cohorts.   http://www.mnafcs.com/2017-conference/

I hope to see you there!

With love from your retired FACS teacher, 

Jane