Family and Consumer Sciences Education (B.S.) with PK-12 Teaching Certification

Program Overview

The Family and Consumer Sciences (FCS) Education program, approved in November of 2003 by the Pennsylvania Department of Education, is an excellent preparation for those students who wish to be certified to teach family and consumer sciences in kindergarten through twelfth grade in public or private schools. The FCS education major is also a wonderful educational background for those who desire to pursue advanced education and become a school guidance counselor, since many schools prefer those with teaching experience for this role.

Crafted to meet the academic standards for family and consumer sciences education, the FCS major is a collaborative program which incorporates course work from a variety of disciplines across campus, including human development and family science; nutrition and dietetics; early childhood education; and education. The curriculum includes at least four public school (e.g. urban and suburban, middle and high school) and early learning center field and student teaching experiences throughout the four-year program.

Graduates of the Family and Consumer Sciences Education major, with careful planning, can meet all the standards and criteria needed for the Provisional Certified Family Life Educator (CFLE) designation from the National Council on Family Relations, the premier professional organization for family scientists and practitioners. Professionals certified as Family Life Educators are nationally recognized as having knowledge and skills in each of the ten family life substance areas (e.g., internal dynamics of families, parenting, interpersonal relationships, human sexuality, family resource management). See www.ncfr.org/cfle-certification.

There is a national shortage of FCS teachers, so job prospects are excellent. According to the Pennsylvania Association of Family and Consumer Sciences, FCS professionals “develop, integrate, and provide practical knowledge about the things of everyday life—human growth and development; personal behavior; housing and environment; food and nutrition; apparel and textiles; and resource management—that every individual needs every day to make sound decisions which contribute to a healthy, productive, and more fulfilling life” (http://www.pafcs.org/pafcswhatis.htm). In short, family and consumer sciences teachers enhance individual, family, and community well-being through the work that they do. Visit http://www.messiah.edu/info/20406/our_alumni to see what our graduates are doing.

Program Learning Outcomes

Graduates from Messiah’s Family and Consumer Sciences program can:

1. Demonstrate career, community and family connections.
   1. Analyze family, community, and work interrelationships 
   2. Investigate career paths, including those in family and consumer sciences 
   3. Apply career decision-making and transitioning processes
2. Conduct, analyze and apply empirically based research.
3. Reflect on how their personal attributes and Christian convictions impact their vocational pursuits.
4. Gain field experience and practical application opportunities in a variety of school settings.

5. Demonstrate their awareness and knowledge related to multicultural and diverse individual, couple and family experiences (e.g., socioeconomic, rural-urban, various family structures).

6. Explain how resources in family and consumer sciences areas (resource management, consumer economics, financial literacy, living environments, and textiles and apparel) address the diverse needs and goals of individuals, families and communities.

7. Apply principles of human development, interpersonal relationships, and family dynamics necessary to strengthen individuals, couples, and families across the lifespan in contexts such as parenting, caregiving, and the workplace.

8. Attain knowledge about nutrition, food, and wellness practices that enhance individual and family well-being across the lifespan and address related concerns in a global society.

9. Develop a plan to integrate the Family, Career and Community Leaders of America student organization into the program to foster students’ academic growth, application of family and consumer sciences content, leadership, service learning, and career development.

Major Requirements

Complete the following for your major:

Professional Semester:

General Education Requirements