College of Family, Home, and Social Sciences

990 SWKT
(801) 422-2083

Dean: David B. Magleby, Professor, Political Science
Associate Dean: Stephen J. Bahr, Professor, Sociology
Associate Dean: Craig H. Hart, Professor, School of Family Life
Associate Dean: Susan S. Rugh, Associate Professor, History

The College of Family, Home, and Social Sciences is composed of departments that study patterns of human behavior from diverse disciplinary approaches. Teaching and scholarship rely on social scientific methodology to learn about human behavior and human societies — their histories, organization, governments, and economies. As the name implies, the college is particularly concerned with studying the family as the basic unit of society. The many institutes and centers within the college provide opportunities for faculty and students to further research and disseminate scholarship.

Students in the college gain a broad education that helps develop an appreciation of the values of modern civilization and prepares them to contribute effectively as citizens. The knowledge and skills gained in the varied disciplines prepare them well for graduate study and professional careers. Many of the departments and programs housed within the college provide opportunities for student learning outside the classroom through internships and faculty-mentored teaching and research experiences.

Academic Departments and Curriculum Areas

American Heritage
Anthropology
Economics
Family Life
Geography
History
Neuroscience
Political Science
Psychology
Social Work
Sociology

Research and Academic Support Areas

Center for Family History and Genealogy
Center for the Study of Elections and Democracy (CSED)
Charles Redd Center for Western Studies and Lemuel H. Redd Jr. Chair in Western History
Child and Family Studies Laboratory
Comprehensive Clinic
Family Studies Center
Gerontology Program
Museum of Peoples and Cultures
New World Archaeological Foundation
Office of Public Archaeology
Relate Institute
Survey Research Lab
Washington Seminar
Women's Research Institute

International and Area Studies

The College of Family, Home, and Social Sciences administers the International Relations Program, coordinated by Kerk Phillips. Faculty in the college also teach courses in the various area studies programs, including Asian Studies, Latin American Studies, and Middle East Studies. Students in these programs receive advisement from the IAS Advisement Center, 273 HRCB, (801) 422-3548.

College Advisement Center

Lori L. Seely, Supervisor
151 SWKT
(801) 422-3541

Advisors are prepared to assist students in the selection of university core offerings that will contribute to a broad education. Advisors also assist faculty in offering counsel for specific majors, counseling for a career, and monitoring a student's progress toward graduation.

Degrees Offered

Bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees are offered in the college. See the individual department and program listings in this catalog for specific degrees offered and the requirements for each.

Scholarships and Awards

Scholarships and awards are available to qualified students. Applications may be obtained from the Financial Aid Office, A-141 ASB.

Women's Studies Minor

Bonnie Ballif-Spanvill, Director
1063 JFSB
(801) 422-4609
Web: http://wri.byu.edu

The Women's Research Institute sponsors a minor in women's studies. The women's studies minor is an interdisciplinary study of women that complements a student's academic major. The program enlarges intellectual exposure to the theories, research methods, and findings in women's studies; promotes scholarly research in the historical, cultural, and the theological meaning of gender; increases capabilities to build solutions to gender-related problems; and strengthens spiritual understanding of the eternal nature of gender. Courses in the minor represent many disciplines and provide a variety of perspectives on topics relating to women's experiences.

See the Women's Research Institute section of this catalog for course requirements for this minor.

Family Studies Center

Randal D. Day, Director
1053 JFSB
(801) 422-2948

The Family Studies Center is dedicated to identifying characteristics associated with strong families and the processes by which they develop. At the heart of the center's mission is a deep and abiding desire to understand families and family members and to assist them to achieve their full potential. The fundamental guiding document is "The Family: A Proclamation to the World" by the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Understanding and promoting the principles in this proclamation will provide guidelines to help strengthen individuals, marriages, and families.

The center fosters the important link that research can and must have to families themselves. Research that illuminates the relationship between the family and other important institutions such as governments, schools, and business, as well as social contexts including households, neighborhoods, and cultures, is germane to the center's research program. Relevant information is presented through publications, conferences, symposia, seminars, and lectures.

The center helps organizations design and implement programs to aid couples and individuals in building and sustaining stronger families. Programs are designed not only to strengthen families but also to prevent critical family problems, including family violence, child abuse and neglect, divorce, financial mismanagement, and substance abuse. In addition, public policies that strengthen families are discussed and developed.

Museum of Peoples and Cultures

105 ALLN
(801) 422-0020

The Museum of Peoples and Cultures is located in Allen Hall at 700 North 100 East in Provo. Museum hours are from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. Guided tours are available for a nominal fee and can be scheduled by calling the museum at (801) 422-0020.

Educational Opportunities. Classes in museum practices designed to provide students with practical experience in collections care and management—including computer applications, exhibition curation, and educational programming—are available with approval. Museum practice courses are taught by the museum's staff, who are adjunct anthropology faculty (see listings in the Anthropology section of this catalog). The museum also employs several students each semester to assist in collections work and welcomes volunteers to assist in educational and promotional work.

Anthropological Collections and Research Opportunities. Museum collections comprise prehistoric and ethnographic artifacts from various parts of the world. The bulk of holdings are from the Southwest, Mesoamerica, Polynesia, ancient Peru, and the Great Basin, especially Utah Valley. The museum also cares for a collection of more than 20,000 black and white and color photographs that document BYU archaeological research and artifactual materials. The museum encourages students to inquire about research possibilities using its collections.

Neuroscience Center

Dawson W. Hedges, Director
1055 SWKT
(801) 422-1218

The College of Family, Home, and Social Sciences is the current host for the multi-disciplinary Neuroscience Center. Neuroscience is the field of study covering the development and function of the central nervous system and its connection to influencing and regulating behavior. This degree-granting program functions through the collaborative efforts of the Department of Psychology and the Department of Physiology and Developmental Biology (College of Biology and Agriculture). See the Neuroscience Center section of this catalog for program admission information and course requirements.