Departments
Anthropology
Through a combination of classroom and field work, BYU's Anthropology Program trains students in current methods and theory while teaching them critical analysis skills necessary for many careers, including further academic work in anthropology. Departmental programs and faculty research areas focus on Sociocultural Anthropology and Archaeology. Department faculty provide a variety of opportunities for students to participate in mentored research in subjects of their interest. [5]
Department Web Page: https://anthropology.byu.edu/
Economics
Brigham Young University's first course in economics was taught in 1895 and the Department of Economics was established in 1921. Currently, approximately 28 faculty members are housed in the department. Students study broad range of contemporary policy issues such as natural resource and environmental economics; economic development and growth; international trade and finance; economic history; the organization of industries; the development and efficiency of law; business cycles; labor markets; and public and private finance. [6]
Department Web Page: https://economics.byu.edu/
Geography
Geography was originally part of the Geology Department, with a few geology professors teaching courses in geography. In 1955, the independent Geography Department was created, consisting of three full-time faculty, and Elliott Tuttle as chair. [7] Today the geography department offers six major emphases: Global Studies, Environmental Studies, Travel & Tourism, Urban Planning, Geospatial Science & Technology, and Geospatial Intelligence, [8] and five minors: Geospatial Science & Technology, Geography Teaching, Global Studies, Travel and Tourism, and Urban and Regional Planning. [9] They have twelve full-time faculty members and a number of adjunct professors. They work with many different cities and governments on a variety of projects. [7]
Department Web Page: http://geography.byu.edu/
History
Established in 1950, the History Department is made up of an average of 450 students and 44 faculty. It offers four majors: History, Family History- Genealogy, History Teaching, and Social Science Teaching, and four minors: History, Family History- Genealogy, History/Social Science Teaching, and Native American Studies. They offer an average of 140 classes each year including courses in African, Asian, European, Latin American, Mediterranean, Middle Eastern, and United States history. [10] It established its first chair, the De Lamar Jensen Chair of Early Modern History, in 2017. [11]
Department Web Page: https://history.byu.edu/
Political science
The political science department offers a BA in political science and minors in political science, legal studies, international strategy and diplomacy, and political research and data analysis. The department has numerous affiliates, namely the Center for the Study of Elections and Democracy at BYU, [12] the Political and Economic Development Labs, [13] and WomanStats Project. [14] The department also sponsors on-campus clubs, such as BYU College Democrats, BYU College Republicans, Women in Politics, Pi Sigma Alpha (Honors Society) and Tocqueville Group. Their alumni society is the BYU Political Affairs Society. [15]
Department Web Page: https://politicalscience.byu.edu/
Psychology
The psychology program offers a bachelor's degree in psychology, a PhD in psychology, and a PhD in clinical psychology. [16] The psychology doctoral program focuses on broad coverage of the discipline of psychology and scientific research skills during the first four semesters. The last two years of the program, students pursue specialized coursework and training in one of three emphasis areas: applied social psychology, behavioral neurobiology, or theoretical/ philosophical psychology. Students complete a master's degree as part of the program and complete a master's thesis by the end of their second year. Degrees in counseling psychology and school psychology are offered through the McKay School of Education. [17]
Department Web Page: https://psychology.byu.edu/
School of Family Life
The School of Family Life (SFL) is one of the largest academic programs at BYU. It provides undergraduate emphases in family studies, family social services, human development, biological foundations of human development, and family and consumer sciences education, minors in family life and gerontology, and MS and PhD clinical and non-clinical programs. It also hosts several general education classes taken by a wide range of university students. [18]
School Web Page: https://familylife.byu.edu/
School of Social Work
The BYU master of social work program offers two emphases: clinical social work and research. The social work program was ranked 104 in the nation by U.S. News & World Report in 2012 [19] Students are required to complete two internships and most work on faculty-mentored research.
School Web Page: https://socialwork.byu.edu/
Sociology
The sociology department offers a bachelor's and master's degree. In the undergraduate program, students select their courses based on their career interests. Possible sequences to follow include research and analysis; public policy/law/criminology; family/social work/public policy; business; liberal education degree; academic sociology; and international or domestic development. The graduate program enrolls approximately two-dozen students.
Department Web Page: https://sociology.byu.edu/
Research & academic support centers
In addition to the ten departments, the Family, Home, and Social Sciences oversees twelve research and academic support centers.
Center for Family History and Genealogy
Family History has a rich and long history at BYU. The Family History Program at Brigham Young University began in 1962. Various courses dedicated to genealogical research were offered, and students were able to choose either a two-year certificate or a family history minor. In addition, researchers were hired to conduct professional genealogical research for clients. The current Center for Family History and Genealogy was founded in 2000 as a place for students to engage in serious, academically rigorous genealogical/family historical research. Numerous faculty members and campus organizations participate in or supported family history on campus. [20]
Center Web Page: https://cfhg.byu.edu/
Center for the Study of Elections and Democracy (CSED)
The Center for the Study of Elections and Democracy (CSED) at Brigham Young University was founded in 1998 as a nonpartisan academic research center seeking to increase knowledge about the practice of American democracy. CSED focuses on the production and dissemination of research that meets high academic standards, is useful to policy makers, and informs citizens. CSED-sponsored research has been published by leading academic journals and presses in the areas of campaign finance, voting technology and election reform, presidential and congressional elections, religion and politics, and democratic deliberation. CSED scholars frequently provide expert commentary on national and local politics in areas related to their research. [21]
Center Web Page: https://csed.byu.edu/
Charles Redd Center for Western Studies
Utah ranchers Charles and Annaley Redd established the Lemuel Hardison Redd, Jr., Endowed Chair in Western American History in 1972 to promote and honor research, publication and teaching in Western American History. [22] The center offers seventeen different awards to BYU faculty, students, and unaffiliated researchers. [23] The Redd Center regularly sponsors public lectures to allow scholars to share research and invite the people to learn more about the Intermountain West. While the number of lectures presented each year varies, there are three annual named lectures: The Annaley Naegle Redd Lecture, held at the time of the Redd Center annual board meeting, the Howard and Hazel Butler Peters Lecture, and a lecture given by a recipient of a Clarence Dixon Taylor Award. [24]
Center Web Page: https://reddcenter.byu.edu/
Child and Family Studies Laboratory
The Child and Family Studies Laboratory was created to train BYU students in appropriate teaching techniques for young children to be used in the home, church, and professional settings by modeling a developmentally appropriate preschool program. It provides summer, STEM, preschool, and kindergarten programs as developmentally appropriate learning experience for preschool children and their parents. The laboratory also exists to aid in, facilitate, and conduct research with your children and families. [25]
Laboratory Web Page: https://preschool.byu.edu/
Comprehensive Clinic
The BYU Comprehensive Clinic offers counseling services for individuals, couples, and families in the Utah County community. Since the Clinic is also a research and training facility, counseling is provided by graduate student interns under the close supervision of experienced faculty who are licensed therapists. In addition to therapy, the clinic offers various psychological assessments. The building also hosts the Communication Disorders Department from the McKay School of Education, as well as LDS Family Services. Both organizations provide a wide variety of groups and counseling services and adoption services. [26]
Clinic Web Page: https://comprehensiveclinic.byu.edu/
Family Studies Center
The Family Studies Center conducts research that identifies characteristics associated with strong marriages and families, the processes by which they develop, and positive individual and relationship outcomes of healthy family relationships. Historically, the Family Studies Center has supported funding for research on family relationships (e.g., the Flourishing Families Project), conferences on family topics (e.g., Families and Health; Work and Families), and outreach activities (e.g., “Families Under Fire” conference). The center also hosts workshops on research methods used with family data. [27]
Center Web Page: https://familystudiescenter.byu.edu/
Museum of Peoples and Cultures
The Museum of Peoples and Cultures cares for the anthropological, archaeological, and ethnographic collections in the custody of the university. The museum provides a professional learning environment for BYU students. It also facilitates teaching and research on peoples and cultures by BYU faculty, staff, students, and by members of the scholarly community in peer institutions. The museum is open to the public to educate visitors about peoples and cultures as appropriate to the museum's holdings and collecting scope. [28]
Museum Web Page: https://mpc.byu.edu/
New World Archaeological Foundation (NWAF)
The New World Archaeological Foundation is an archaeological research and teaching entity administered by the Department of Anthropology. The research focus is the study of the origins and subsequent trajectory of complex societies in the New World with special emphasis on Mesoamerica. Related to that study is the dissemination of findings through the NWAF Papers and other professional outlets. The NWAF also exists to enrich BYU student experience through mentoring/internship opportunities. [29]
Foundation Web Page: https://nwaf.byu.edu/
Office of Public Archaeology (OPA)
OPA was officially organized in March 1981. OPA employs BYU Anthropology graduate students as crew chiefs and undergraduate students as crew members. External consultants are employed on an “as-needed” basis. OPA has carried out projects throughout Utah and in parts of Nevada, Wyoming, Colorado, and Arizona.
OPA has a diverse clientele, including Federal, State and local agencies, and private sector groups whose emphases include utilities construction, oil and gas exploration, mining, road construction, water projects, etc. Staff and employees have produced well over 800 technical reports and several professional articles and publications since 1981. These vary from reports on smaller projects carried out by individuals, to much larger excavations or survey projects involving large crews and extensive field and laboratory work. [30]
Civic Engagement
The mission of the Office of Civic Engagement is to provide students and faculty with appropriate skills and meaningful opportunities to engage in their respective communities. It contributes to undergraduate education by providing specific training in leadership and organizational skills as well as practical hands-on opportunities. It helps students acquire an understanding of the practical application of civic engagement and glean valuable lessons from participating and leading civic engagement projects. [31]
Office Web Page: https://civicengagement.byu.edu/
American Heritage
The American Heritage Center oversees a general education course by the same name that all students must take to graduate. BYU's Board of Trustees created the idea of American Heritage over 25 years ago because they believed that university students needed a better understanding of the origins of the Constitution and its role in American life. The course draws heavily from three different disciplines: political science, economics and history. The goal of the course is to teach students the religious, historical, political and economic origins of the Constitution, how the Constitution works, and to apply their knowledge of the Constitution to analyze major historical, political, and economic issues. [32]
Center Web Page: https://americanheritage.byu.edu/
FHSS Research Support Center
The Research Support Center assists and educates students and teachers in the College of Family Home and Social Sciences in implementing and improving research and statistical procedures. they offer face-to-face and over the phone consultation. They provide instruction in using statistical programs like SPSS and Stata to calculate summary information and perform simple statistical analysis. [33]
Center Web Page: https://fhssrsc.byu.edu/
History
The College of Family Living was led by director, Royden C. Braithwaite, and from 1955 to 1981, by deans Marion C. Pfund, Jack B. Trunnell, Virginia F. Cutler, and Blaine R. Porter. The educational aim of the College of Family Living was to prepare students for homemaking, for jobs related to homemaking, and to support and enhance family life within their communities. The departments in the college were: Clothing and Textiles, Economics and Management of the Home, Food and Nutrition, Homemaking Education, Housing Design, Human Development and Family Relationships, Housing and Home Management, Family Life Education, Child Development and Family Relationships, Home Economics Education, Environmental Design, Family Economics and Home Management, Food Science and Nutrition, Interior Design, Family Studies, Interior Environment, and Family Resource Management. [34]
The College of Social Sciences was led by deans John T. Bernhard from 1966 to 1970 and Martin B. Hickman from 1970 to 1981. Previously, it was a part of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences. The departments within the College of Social Sciences were: Anthropology and Archaeology, Asian Studies, Economics, Geography, History, International Relations, Political Science, Psychology, Russian Studies and Sociology, and Government. [35]
In 1981, the College of Family Living and the College of Social Sciences merged to form the College of Family, Home, and Social Sciences with Martin Hickman as the founding dean. The following have served as deans for the College of Family, Home, and Social Sciences:
- Donovan E. Fleming 1989 – 1993
Endowed chairs
The College of Family, Home, and Social Sciences has four specific endowed chairs.
Mary Lou Fulton Chair
The Fulton Chair supports causes and programs that uphold and strengthen the family unit. Mary Lou was particularly sensitive to helping others remain free of addictive substances or crippling afflictions that limit their possibilities in life. She understood the importance of preparing future families for success by educating youth about principles that foster strong, eternal family relationships. The Mary Lou Fulton Chair in the College of Family, Home, and Social Sciences stands as a tribute to her life of service, to high values, and to family. [36]
Camilla Eyring Kimball Chair
The purposes of the Camilla Eyring Kimball Chair are to support professorships for faculty in the College of Family, Home, and Social Sciences who have made distinguished professional contributions to strengthen home and family. Visiting scholars who come to BYU to share their expertise regarding home and family to faculty, students, and the community. Research and scholarship at BYU with a home and family focus. [36]
Marjorie Pay Hinckley Chair
The Marjorie Pay Hinckley Endowed Chair In Social Work and the Social Sciences honors Sister Hinckley's commitment to strengthening home and family. The Chair enriches the educational and professional lives of students and faculty in the College of Family Home and Social Sciences as they strive to alleviate problems faced by individuals and families worldwide. [37]
Lemuel Hardison Redd, Jr. Chair
The Lemuel Hardison Redd, Jr. Chair in Western American history was established in 1972 by Charles and Annaley Redd, prominent Utah ranchers and philanthropists, to promote and honor research, publication and teaching in western American history. The chair was named in honor of the father of Charlie Redd, who settled and developed Latter-day Saint communities in the slickrock desert of southeastern Utah and established a sprawling livestock empire. [36]
In the news
In 2016, research from family life professor Sarah M. Coyne found that Disney Princess culture magnifies stereotypes in young girls. [38] Family life professor Larry Nelson lead a study that found that individuals who use problematic media (violent video games, gambling, pornography) become more withdrawn over the course of a year. [39] Family life professor Sarah M. Coyne found that children who frequently engage with superhero culture are more likely to be physically and relationally aggressive one year later. [40]
In 2017, School of Family Life assistant professor Alex Jensen revealed that the perception of favoritism may have more effect on a child-parent relationship than was previously considered. [41]
In 2019, Adam Rogers, professor of family life, found that many adolescents do not have the cognitive skills and resources to competently deal with the challenging aspects of relationships. [42] Erin K. Holmes, Jeremy B. Yorgason, E. Jeffrey Hill & David B. Allsop collaborated on research implicating that better relationships with your partner come when both partners feeling empowered and exhibit trust, especially in the financial process. [43] Matt Easton, the college valedictorian, came out as homosexual during his valedictory address to the college. [44] Study was done by Laura Padilla-Walker, Daye Son, and Larry J. Nelson investigating different profiles of helicopter parenting in conjunction with parental psychological control and parental warmth. [45] Researchers at BYU found that how individuals perceive the space (too crowded or too spread out) in their homes has more of an effect on family functioning than actual characteristics, such as the size of the house or number of bedrooms. [46] BYU economics professor Arden Pope collaborated in research that showed significant human health benefits when air quality is better than the current national ambient air quality standard. [47] Research led by Sarah Coyne, a professor of family life at Brigham Young University, found that the amount of time spent on social media is not directly increasing anxiety or depression in teenagers. [48]
In 2020, Julianne Holt-Lunstad, a world-renowned expert on the influence of social relationships on physical health, used her research to help the audiences of Science, The New Yorker, The Atlantic, The New York Times, The Guardian, Insider, NPR, and other media outlets recognize the importance of staying socially connected while being physically distant. [49] Sarah Coyne lead a six-year study, the longest study ever done on video game addiction, that found that about 90% of gamers do not play in a way that is harmful or causes negative long-term consequences. [50] Political science professor Michael Barber, co-authored a paper in which research found that vote-by-mail does not give either U.S. political party an edge in races. [51] BYU's Counseling and Psychological Services, in the largest study of its kind to date, found that internet-delivered cognitive-based therapy worked just as well as in-person therapy for those with mild to moderate symptoms. [52]
In 2021, in the longest study to date on the effects of social media on teens, BYU research found a correlation between time spent on social media and suicidality risk among teenage girls. [53] The Brigham Young University Record Linking Lab developed one of the first data sets of each individual who died in the 1918 pandemic by extracting the cause of death from death certificates, allowing researchers to better understand the best strategies to combat viral spread over time. [54] BYU professor of political science Jeremy Pope studied the delegates of the Constitutional Convention and found that fathers who had more sons were more likely to vote for a stronger national government than fathers of daughters, who wanted a weaker national government and greater state authority. [55] BYU's Center for Family History and Genealogy teamed up with the University of Washington to trace cancer-causing variants back to common ancestors to prevent hereditary cancer. [56] Psychology professor Chad Jensen found that using a cell phone in 'Night Shift' will not help a user fall or stay asleep. [57] Professors Timothy Smith and Julianne Holt-Lunstad found that interpersonal relationships are key parts of medical treatment plans and help patients reduce stress and live longer. [58] And in the longest study to date on the impact of princess media on consumers, new research from BYU professor Sarah Coyne found that children who engaged with princess culture were more likely to later hold progressive views about women and subscribe less to attitudes of hegemonic masculinity. [59]
Brigham Young University (BYU) is a private research university in Provo, Utah, United States. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Stetson University is a private university with its main campus in DeLand, Florida, United States. Established in 1883 as DeLand Academy, it was later renamed John B. Stetson University in honor of a donor. The university's main campus in DeLand spans 175 acres and has Florida's oldest collection of education-related buildings, including DeLand Hall, the state's longest-standing building used for higher education.
Brigham Young University–Hawaii (BYU–Hawaii) is a private college in Laie, Hawaii, United States. It is owned and operated by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. BYU–Hawaii was founded in 1955 and it became a satellite campus of Brigham Young University (BYU) in 1974. In 2004, it was made a separate institution. The college's sole focus is on undergraduate education.
The J. Reuben Clark Law School is the law school of Brigham Young University (BYU) in Provo, Utah. Founded in 1973, the school is named after J. Reuben Clark, a former U.S. Ambassador, Undersecretary of State, and general authority of the institution's sponsoring organization, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
The UCLA School of Education and Information Studies is one of the academic and professional schools at the University of California, Los Angeles. Located in Los Angeles, California, the school combines two departments. Established in 1881, the school is the oldest unit at UCLA, having been founded as a normal school prior to the establishment of the university. It was incorporated into the University of California in 1919.
Thomas Glen Alexander is an American historian and academic who is a professor emeritus at Brigham Young University (BYU) in Provo, Utah, where he was also Lemuel Hardison Redd, Jr. Professor of Western History and director of the Charles Redd Center for Western Studies. After studying at Weber State University (WSU) and Utah State University (USU), he received a PhD from the University of California, Berkeley in 1965. He taught history at BYU from 1964 until 2004, and served in the leadership of various local and historical organizations.
The MIT School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences (SHASS) is one of the five schools of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, US. The school includes 11 academic areas and works alongside six departments, labs, and programs. SHASS grants SB, SM, and PhD degrees. Major fields of study include anthropology, comparative media studies and writing, economics, history, linguistics, literature, music, philosophy, political science, science, technology, and society, and theater arts. Other programs include the Center for International Studies; Knight Science Journalism; Science, Technology, and Society; Security Studies; and HyperStudio.
The main campus of Brigham Young University sits on approximately 560 acres (2.3 km2) nestled at the base of the Wasatch Mountains and includes 311 buildings. The buildings feature a wide variety of architectural styles, each building being built in the style of its time. The grounds and landscaping of the campus won first place in 2005 in America in Bloom's campus division. Furthermore, views of the Wasatch Mountains can be seen from the campus. BYU's Harold B. Lee Library, which The Princeton Review ranked as the #1 "Great College Library" in 2004, has approximately 8½ million items in its collections, contains 98 miles (158 km) of shelving, and can seat 4,600 people. The Spencer W. Kimball Tower is home to several of the university's departments and programs and is the tallest building in Provo, Utah. Furthermore, BYU's Marriott Center, used as a basketball arena, can seat almost 18,000 and is one of the largest on-campus arenas in the nation.
Student life at Brigham Young University is heavily influenced by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The school is privately owned by the church and aims to create an atmosphere in which secular and religious principles are taught in the same classroom.
The Princeton University Department of Psychology, located in Peretsman-Scully Hall, is an academic department of Princeton University in Princeton, New Jersey. For over a century, the department has been one of the most notable psychology departments in the country. It has been home to psychologists who have made significant scientific discoveries in psychology and neuroscience, such as adult neurogenesis in primate brains, the concept of the cognitive miser, bystander non-intervention, face-selective neurons in primate brains, feature integration theory, mental models theory, and prospect theory.
David Blyth Magleby is an American political scientist and distinguished professor of political science at Brigham Young University (BYU) and formerly the dean of the College of Family, Home, and Social Sciences at that institution. He is an expert on direct democracy and campaign finance.
David Lamont Paulsen (1936–2020) was a professor emeritus of philosophy at Brigham Young University (BYU). From 1994 to 1998 he held the Richard L. Evans Chair of Religious Understanding at BYU. He was an active faculty member at BYU from 1972–2011.
The Brigham Young University (BYU) College of Fine Arts and Communications (CFAC) is one of the nine colleges at the university, a private institution operated by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and located in Provo, Utah. Founded in 1925, the college has grown from a small college of the arts with minimal faculty and only 100 students to the second largest college on campus.
Research institutes connected with BYU in the present or past include:
The BYU Division of Continuing Education (DCE) is a division of Brigham Young University (BYU) that oversees continuing education programs.
The BYU College of Life Sciences was originally named the College of Biology and Agriculture. It was formed in 1954 from the division of the College of Applied Science into this college and the College of Family Living, which was a partial predecessor of the College of Family, Home and Social Sciences. While the Agronomy; Horticulture; Animal Husbandry; Industrial Arts and Drawing; and Bacteriology programs all came from the College of Applied Science the Botany; and Zoology and Entomology programs came from the College of Arts and Sciences. Thomas L. Martin was the first dean of the College of Biology and Agriculture. In 1954 the Agricultural Economics Department was moved from the College of Commerce to the College of Biology and Agriculture.
The David O. McKay School of Education (SOE) at Brigham Young University (BYU) specializes in teaching, administration, communication disorders, and educational inquiry. It is located in three buildings on BYU's campus in Provo, Utah, the David O. McKay Building, the John Taylor Building, and the George Albert Smith Fieldhouse. It was ranked number 84 in the United States for best education schools for 2021.
Julianne Holt-Lunstad is a psychologist and professor of psychology and neuroscience at Brigham Young University. She is a fellow of the Society of Experimental Social Psychology and Association for Psychological Science.
Laura M Padilla-Walker is an American developmental psychologist and academic administrator. She is a professor in the School of Family Life at Brigham Young University. She was an associate dean for the BYU College of Family, Home and Social Sciences from 2017-2021 until she became the dean in July 2021.
