After marriage and child rearing, women are
returning to the labor field in growing numbers. There
are increasing opportunities and responsibilities on the
part of educational institutions to provide these women
with an opportunity to fit them for useful and satisfying
lives, to give them a chance to make a contribution to the social order.
This study has revealed that the majority of faculty
wives are interested in raising their educational status.
Sixty-six per cent of these faculty wives were
dissatisfied with their educational backgrounds. At
the time of this study only six per cent of these
women were attending classes.
Ninety-two per cent of the faculty wives were
Blacksburg residents; therefore, propinquity is not a
handicap. Sixty-seven per cent of the husbands were
willing to help with household tasks to free their wives
for classes.
One of the reasons for some of these women not
being in class is that the education of their husbands
and children is their first concern. However, 145 of
these faculty wives felt they could pay for full- or
part—time education. Another major factor that enters into women returning to classes is their place in the
life cycle. Women, on the average, have their last
child in school by the age of 35. This study revealed
that the median age bracket of this sample to be 30
to 34. In a few more years these women will have the
time available to pursue further study if they so desire.
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