Welcome to Human Development & Family Sciences!

We are one of the oldest HDFS programs in the country, and we are at the forefront of innovative teaching and research. The hallmark of our program is that we are interdisciplinary, with faculty from anthropology, education, psychology, sociology and, or course, HDFS! Our research ranges from pre-school readiness to end of life issues, and includes both individual and community well-being. Our faculty win university and national awards for their scholarship and teaching.

Some facts about our program. We have distinguished Faculty:

• 14 Tenured Faculty
• 3 full time + two part-time Instructors
• 2 residential tenured Extension Faculty (and 4 tenured county faculty)
• 6 Research and Professional Faculty

We are a very popular major, with 658 majors in four options:

• Early Child Development & Education
• Family & Consumer Sciences
• Human Services
• Gerontology

We offer three degrees (BA, MS, & Ph.D. in HDFS) and one certificate (Gerontology).

We have 35 Graduate Masters and Doctoral Students in our Graduate Program.

We have cutting edge research and outreach:

• Center for Healthy Aging and Research (CHAR)
• Early Childhood Leadership Directions (ECLD)
• Family Community and Health (FCH)
• Family Policy Program
• Hallie Ford Center for Healthy Children and Families
• Integrative Analysis of Longitudinal Studies on Aging (IALSA)
• Sustainable Rural Communities Initiative

Our Child Development Center located in Bates Hall is a leader in the field of Child Development.

The HDFS Department has three Core Signature Themes.