JULY FEATURE
The Human Ecology
of Business
How the UW-Madison School of Human Ecology brings a fresh point of view to the marketplace
Even in a global marketplace, the most significant purchasing decision always comes down to one: the next one.
As corporations that produce consumer goods and services become larger and their ties to local communities more remote, the students and faculty at the University of Wisconsin-Madison's School of Human Ecology offer a fresh perspective on commerce — the consumer's. It's a perspective that business is taking note of.
"Corporations recognize that customer satisfaction is directly related to profitability," says Robin Douthitt, an economist and dean of the school.
Robin Douthitt, Dean of the School of Human Ecology
Photos by Bob Rashid
Known as "home economics" before 1968, the school began more than a century ago as the Department of Domestic Science. In the classrooms, studios and laboratories where young women once learned to manage homes and teach high school home economics, students today learn how to apply scientific principles and research findings to a range of subjects dealing with quality of life.
From designing clothing for premature infants to improving ergonomics for an aging workforce to studying how couples communicate at the end of life, the research interests of the school's students and faculty literally span the life cycle from cradle to grave.
With many students pursuing interdisciplinary degrees and faculty holding joint appointments with other academic departments, one of Douthitt's challenges is to cultivate and communicate the school's common mission: to improve the quality of life for individuals, families and the groups and communities in which they work and live.
Awareness of the consumer's perspective distinguishes graduates of the School of Human Ecology from other academic disciplines, according to the dean. While other academic units focus more on business-to-business commerce, students in the School of Human Ecology prepare for careers in business-to-consumer relations.
Connecting with graduates and interns
The School of Human Ecology shares a career counseling service with the
College of Letters and Science. To learn more about on-campus recruiting
opportunities, to post internship opportunities or to view student
portfolios, contact the College of Letters and Science/School of Human Ecology
Career Services office at (608) 262-3921 or careers@lssaa.wisc.edu.
"Our graduates are well prepared for positions in offices of consumer affairs in larger corporations and agencies, where they resolve disputes between the organization and its customers," Douthitt says.
Students in the school's personal finance program learn how to counsel individuals regarding investments, credit, taxes, insurance, retirement planning and other money matters. "Human ecology is the only school on campus that prepares graduates to become certified financial planners," Douthitt notes.
At a campus credit counseling service, student volunteers gain valuable, real-life experience counseling their peers. Last year, students took their volunteer services to local community centers, where they helped prepare more than 3,800 income tax returns for low-income taxpayers.
Internships with local financial institutions and investment firms provide consumer science students with customer relations experience before graduation. At the local branch of Smith Barney, student interns make a two-year, tag-team commitment, during which the more experienced student trains the first-year intern.
"We work closely with the internship sponsors to make sure they are mentoring the students' learning," Douthitt says. "It's an opportunity for the students to get on-the-job experience. Almost all of the students who participate in internships graduate with jobs."
Demand-side economics
The demand side of marketplace economics is the focus of the school's retailing program. Retailing graduates can be found in management positions at Target, Marshall Field's, Sears, Neiman Marcus, Wal-Mart and other well-known retailers.
Mail-order giant Lands' End, located in nearby Dodgeville, Wis., works closely with the school's textile and apparel design program to provide continuing education opportunities for current employees and to recruit new employees. "Lands' End has difficulty finding textile designers who want to move to the Midwest," Douthitt says. "After students see the opportunities here, they love it."
Soft goods manufacturers work closely with textile chemists on the faculty, whose research into new fibers and fiber characteristics is revolutionizing the functionality of fabrics. Researchers at the school are developing a process to add antibacterial properties to fabrics used in hospitals and clinics.
The aging population — and its changing social, economic, psychological and physical needs — is the subject of research throughout the school. In one of several ongoing studies, interior design students are learning how to design living and working spaces to accommodate older adults by working with residents of Oakwood Village, a local retirement community.
Public policy that affects workers and their families is central to the school's mission. Researchers at the school developed a consumer rating system for evaluating day care programs, relying on the time-tested use of marketplace forces to improve quality. Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle recommended policymakers adopt the rating system as a way to help parents ensure their children are cared for in a safe learning environment while they work.
Quality of life, in the moment
In a culture that often puts profits before people, Douthitt is passionate about improving the quality of the human experience in all aspects of the "near environment," the people, places and objects that make up the weft and warp of life.
Douthitt came to Wisconsin in 1986 as assistant professor of consumer science after earning a doctorate in microeconomics at Cornell University. Her research into the value of unpaid time that women contribute to childrearing and community service has been reported widely in the popular and academic press.
Register online for Career Expo
Meet prospective employees in person at the UW-Madison's Career
Expo from 5-8 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 28, at the Kohl Center, 601
W. Dayton St. Online registration for employers begins in mid-July.
Visit the Student Academic Affairs
website for more opportunities.
Her interest in issues affecting women and children is more than a scholarly pursuit. Shortly after arriving on the UW-Madison campus, Douthitt started and directed a women's faculty mentoring program. She also was instrumental in founding a co-op residence for single undergraduate parents and their children.
Douthitt's take-charge spirit helped her meet — and conquer — her greatest personal challenge: cancer. The brush with mortality prompted her to change her career path from teaching and research to administration.
"I needed to go home at night feeling like I had accomplished something. Teaching and research offer great satisfaction, but you may not see the results until five or 10 years in the future. I needed more short-term rewards," she comments.
Administration gives her the opportunity to see more immediate results and to practice in her chosen field of economics. "I see administrative issues from the perspective of an economist. We have challenging fiscal issues that require us to think strategically and work more efficiently. I can help faculty find the money to get started, but then I tell them, 'You have to be entrepreneurial.'"
At the heart of the school's — and the dean's — values is the belief that improving the environment where people live out their daily lives ultimately contributes to the well-being of the larger environment of communities and societies.
"How we interact with our immediate family, physical environment and the communities we live and work in is critically important to our society's well being," says Douthitt.
For more information visit the Web site of the School of Human Ecology.
Visit our archives to read articles from previous issues of the UW Business Wire.