Iowa State hosts over 700 FCCLA Members

For some, the college search process starts as early as middle school. Thanks to the College of Health and Human Sciences fall recruitment rally, high school and middle school students from all across Iowa had the chance to learn about what CHS has to offer and why they should become Cyclones.

Over 700 Family, Career, and Community Members of America (FCCLA) members participated in hands-on activities related to family and consumer sciences across campus on October 18. From a cooking challenge to a textile science lesson, there was something for everyone during this interactive field trip.

FCCLA is a national Career and Technical Student Organization (CTSO) for students in Family and Consumer Sciences (FCS) education. Aligned with family and consumer sciences classes at the middle and high school level, FCCLA provides opportunities for students to interact with the content in their classrooms and then take it the next step further to compete in different events while being part of a community.

FCCLA officers are elected in March, making this the first large event that Iowa State has collaborated on with the Iowa chapter. Officers in the Iowa chapter hosted cooking competitions in the Culinary Creation Lab (CCL), where students were judged on their grilled cheese and deviled egg creations. Teachers also attended the field trip.

Following the chapter competitions, students headed out to attend one of 15 college-hosted sessions. Sessions included an early childhood lab school observation in Palmer, a DATS lab demonstration and interactive stations hosted by apparel, merchandising, and design faculty Dr. Xiang and Dr. Ziang, food product development explorations and more. CHS Student Ambassadors also hosted a panel discussion, where they answered questions about their experience in the College of Health and Human Sciences and at Iowa State as a whole.

“By bringing FCCLA students to campus, and then hosting those sessions within each of our departments, we were able to get them into the hands of those experts and share that information, showing them how the content they are learning in high school can translate into a future career,” said Landon Calderwood, Campus Visit coordinator for CHS. “It helped to place those sparks of what they might be interested in and bring them to a campus where there is a possibility for them to do so.”

FCCLA is the only student-led organization with family consumer sciences at its focus. Along with leadership opportunities, students have various opportunities to network state and nationwide. Because of the similarities between Family and Consumer Sciences and much of the content offered in CHS majors, involvement in FCS is a great way for students to connect with

majors offered here on campus prior to their freshman year. Additionally, it’s a new requirement for all FCS programs to have an adjacent FCCLA program.

“This event was a perfect opportunity for kids across Iowa to explore future career fields while they are in high school so they can make an even more informed decision as they approach graduation,” said Calderwood.

Visit https://fcclainc.org/ to learn more about FCCLA and what it offers for students nationwide.