Virginia Cutler

Virginia Farrer Cutler (December 17, 1905 – May 20, 1993) was an American academic. She was the head of the Home Economics Department at the University of Utah and dean of the College of Family Living at Brigham Young University (BYU). She also worked for the United States Point Four Program in Southeast Asia, established a home science degree at the University of Ghana, and served on the White House Consumer Committee under President Richard Nixon.

Cutler was born in Park City, Utah and was raised in Murray, Utah on a farm. After graduating from high school, she studied education at the University of Utah on a four-year scholarship and graduated in 1927. She married Ralph Garr Cutler in 1929, gave birth to two sons, and became a widow in 1931, just two years after her marriage. She taught school in Utah in order to support her family before moving to California to attend Stanford University. After graduating from Stanford with her master's degree in 1937, Cutler enrolled in Cornell University, receiving her doctorate in 1946. She then became the head of the Home Economics Department at the University of Utah, where she helped establish the Sterling Sill Home Living Center and advocated for higher education for women. She later served as dean of the College of Family Living at Brigham Young University from 1961 to 1972. In between her years working as a university administrator, Cutler traveled to Thailand and Indonesia through the United States Point Four Program (sponsored by the US Department of State) to work as an education advisor and economic consultant. She stayed in Southeast Asia for a total of seven years, establishing schools and training new teachers. Then, in 1966, Cutler traveled to Ghana to establish the Department of Home Science at the University of Ghana. Later in her life, she served as president of the Utah chapter of the American Association of University Women and as a member of the White House Consumer Committee from 1972 to 1975. She died on May 20, 1993, having received multiple honors and awards. The Virginia F. Cutler Lecture Series, held annually at Brigham Young University by the College of Family, Home, and Social Sciences, is named after her.

Early years Virginia Grace Farrer Cutler was born on December 17, 1905, in Park City, Utah to Robert and Mary Farrer. Her grandparents were immigrants from Denmark. and her mother held volunteer positions in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints while working in the home caring for Virginia and her six siblings. The family ran a produce and livestock farm in the Salt Lake Valley. She was a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Cutler graduated from Murray High School in 1922, She was a first-generation college graduate. Cutler then moved to Manti, Utah to work as a home economics teacher. Next, she taught at Draper Junior High School and Jordan High School. of sepsis. She chose the institution because it was known for having the best home economics program in the country. During her two years at Cornell, Cutler conducted a study of fifty families from the Ithaca area, and her findings were published by the university. Cornell also distributed pamphlets with a list of the important attributes of a successful home, developed by Cutler. She worked at the university for the next 8 years, during which time she developed a unique "home values test" to help families measure exactly what they wished to improve within their home. She also played an important role in establishing the Sterling Sill Home Living Center, a place where young women could receive hands-on training on how to establish a successful home. Supervisors at the center would help the women learn how to plan menus and maintain a budget. Cutler herself was a supervisor for a year. Her other accomplishments while at the University of Utah include raising funds for the National Home Economics Association's new D.C. headquarters, speaking as a guest lecturer, and organizing an annual "Career Days" event for high-school age women. One of Cutler's main goals as head of the university's Home Economics Department was to assist and encourage young women in receiving higher education. She stated: "Every young woman needs two careers: One in the home, and one where she can earn a satisfactory living outside the home." Cutler also worked as a visiting professor at the University of Washington during this time.

Dean of the College of Family Living at Brigham Young University When Ernest L. Wilkinson first visited Dr. Virginia Cutler in her office at the University of Utah to offer her the position of head of Brigham Young University's (BYU's) Home Economics Department, she told him she wasn't interested. Cutler enjoyed the work she was currently doing, and felt that BYU was too small to fit her goals. Regardless, Wilkinson persisted. He involved Cutler in multiple projects, including the design and construction of seventeen residence halls for female students. A conflict of sorts arose between Wilkinson and the staff at the University of Utah over Cutler, so she decided to spend the summer abroad in Thailand instead of working at either university.

International and civil work

Southeast Asia Before becoming Dean of the College of Family Living, Cutler was invited to attend a conference held at Columbia University in 1954 that introduced a program to establish home economics education abroad. a US organization that sent American professionals abroad to 58 countries to assist in education, public health, and other areas. The motivation behind this program, according to a University of Utah student newspaper, was "to aid in educating the people against Communist infiltration by cultural and social advancement." The United States Department of State sponsored Cutler's trip to Southeast Asia. Dr. Cutler worked in a dozen teacher training colleges across the archipelago. She was also president of the Utah chapter of the American Association of University Women. She first became involved with the association at BYU, but when she later was appointed president, she gained the added responsibility of traveling to various local chapters throughout the state. "I went to all of them," she said, "and at every one I gave a rip-roaring speech about how important it is for women to have an opportunity and to get all the education they could." She also served on the association's general board for 15 years. In 1976, Dr. Cutler was named one of the 10 Most Outstanding Women of Utah.

Cutler was also chairman of the Major Appliance Consumer Action Panel (MACAP), a group of six experts she established to assist Major Appliance Industry, a company in Chicago, Illinois, in meeting consumer needs and addressing consumer concerns. Cutler has been awarded the Joseph F. Smith Family Living Award, the Abraham Smoot Public Service Award, and distinguished service awards from both the University of Utah and Cornell University. She was the first "distinguished professor" at BYU. Cutler was also named the American Association of University Women's Woman of the Year in 1966 and the Utah Mother of the year in 1972.