Captain Ian Schmutzler, “The Police Chief Magazine” Article

My good friend, Captain Ian Schmutzler, of the Vacaville Police Department recently had an article published in The Police Chief Magazine(Click here for a link to the article.)  His article discusses the complex issue of mental illness and homelessness and how police are forming partnerships with community stakeholders to ameliorate this difficult and unfortunate situation.

Captain Schmutzler will be one of the guest speakers for my Financial Crimes class at the Fairfield-Suisun Adult School this coming Fall Semester.   He will be speaking primarily on counterfeiting, identity theft, and the crimes that have been occurring since the legalization of cannabis because of the large amounts of cash involved.

On a personal note, I would like to recognize Captain Schmutzler for his frank and open dialogue when it comes to local police issues, as well as his forward-thinking and progressive approach to proactive community policing.  Captain Schmutzler is considerate of alternative viewpoints, and he is very much willing to “think outside of the box.”  Captain Schmutzler sets a very high standard at the Vacaville Police Department.

 

What is happening to Home Economics?

Home Economics is an interdisciplinary field of study that covers various subjects such as: family studies, food/nutrition, clothing/textiles, and consumer economics/personal finance.  In  recent years the field of study that was once referred to as Home Economics has been re-branded to Family and Consumer Sciences.

Most high schools, adult schools, colleges, and universities offer some or many of the courses that one would find in a Family and Consumer Sciences program.  In the local area the Greater San Francisco Bay Area / Greater Sacramento Metropolitan Area, there has been significant changes in the course and degree offerings at the college and university levels.

Solano College used to offer a degree in Home Economics.  This degree and certificate option was last listed in their 2011-2012 catalog.  View the Solano College 2011-2012 catalog here: http://www.solano.edu/catalog/1112/SCCCatalog201011.pdfSolano College still offers some Home Economics related classes, but the major no longer exists there.

UC Davis is in the process of phasing out their Textiles & Clothing and Fiber & Polymers degree programs.  See the links below for more information:

UC Davis Aggies Article:
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UC Davis Textiles and Clothing Webpage Announcement:
https://www.ucdavis.edu/majors/textiles-and-clothing/
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UC Davis Fiber and Polymers Webpage Announcement:
https://www.ucdavis.edu/majors/fiber-and-polymer-science/
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California State University Sacramento currently has a Family and Consumer Science program with four different areas of study.  For more information, visit their website at: http://www.csus.edu/facs/

This article is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all of the colleges and universities in the area that offer courses and majors in Family and Consumer Science, but rather to demonstrate the trend in Home Economics / Family and Consumer Science in education.  For those who are interested in Family and Consumer Sciences, there are various professional groups and organizations dedicated to Family and Consumer Sciences.  Among these are:

The Fairfield-Suisun Adult School offers several “Home Economics / Family and Consumer Science” courses.  Please visit us at: https://www.fsusd.org/fsas.  This summer, I will be teaching Consumer Economics and Personal Finance at the Fairfield-Suisun Adult School.