Recipes for Success

By Wendy Cole/Chicago

Brianna Nascimiento and Jianna Garcia of suburban Brentwood, N.Y., had just flown halfway across the country to drum up interest in their burgeoning handcrafted jewelry business. The partners wore tailored black pantsuits befitting the successful entrepreneur. But they weren't in Chicago to meet with potential investors or customers. Standing in front of an impressive display of their bracelets, chokers and belts, the founders of Bead Bonanza prepared to be judged by a panel of home-economics teachers and students. "We taught our employees to interact with people, be creative and excel yourself and stuff," said Jianna, clutching notecards during a 20-min. sales presentation. Brianna and Jianna are just 13, and they were trying for a gold medal at a national leadership convention for teenagers based on their pitch and, among other things, knowledge of local tax codes.

The girls are among the new faces of home economics--a school subject that did not actually vanish along with the family fondue set in the 1970s. Its practitioners now prefer to call it family and consumer sciences and seek both to encourage girls to pursue interests beyond the kitchen and sewing room and to invite boys to discover the competitive thrills of gastronomy.

When asked if they planned to become homemakers, the bead entrepreneurs wrinkled their noses. Brianna wants to be a lawyer and Jianna, a marine biologist. But their ambitions have not deterred them from becoming active in the group founded 59 years ago as Future Homemakers of America (FHA). In 1999 in a quest to stay relevant amid steep membership declines, the group decided to rename itself the Family, Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA). The FCCLA'S adult advisers say the new name better reflects the broader purpose of the group, which provides kids with opportunities to learn how to become leaders outside the classroom. According to the organization's literature, it focuses on such diverse challenges as how to manage stress, find a career, understand traffic safety and navigate the perils of obesity and school violence. The chic attire of the bead-business owners turned out to be an exception. At the group's national convention in Chicago in July, lots of the 5,000 boys and girls were decked out in crisp red blazers and power ties, many of them dying to show off their skills in "extreme leadership events," such as running faux business meetings and going through mock job interviews as prospective employees. Bottom line: you can excel at home ec these days without preheating an oven.

FHA's membership peaked at 607,000 in 1966; the FCCLA has about 220,000. The falloff reflects continuing cutbacks in home-ec classes from middle and high school curricula because to be eligible for the group, students must complete at least one class in family and consumer science. While there are no national statistics on the cuts, educators complain that this kind of education is disappearing. "Even principals don't understand our importance," said Washington family and consumer science teacher Gail Renee Jones. "I have nothing against math. But most people don't need to use the Pythagorean theorem when they grow up." Over the past decade, federal funds for home-ec programs in Virginia were slashed from $750,000 to $45,000. Recently, the home-ec room in a Forsyth County, Ga., school was turned into office cubicles. FCCLA national board member Carol Watkins insists home-ec cuts are shortsighted: "In many homes, parents are so busy that kids never learn the skills to manage a household. We fill the gap."

Eager to rebuild its base, the FCCLA is reaching out to new constituencies in lower-income school districts. In 2000 it launched an urban pilot program that enables kids in Atlanta, Cleveland, Ohio, and Seattle, among other cities, who might not be able to afford the average $12-a-year dues, to participate. And the name change has also helped attract boys. Nationally, 21% of members are male, up from 7% in 1981. Jonathan Wichman, 17, of Walnut Ridge, Ark., who just completed his yearlong term as national president, says he was a mediocre, easily distracted student when he joined as a seventh-grader. The experience has given him focus, and he now gets A's, plays quarterback and goes to many FCCLA planning meetings. But how's his cooking? "I can make mac and cheese," he says. At least this young leader won't starve when he grows up.