Young, Louise (1910 - )

Louise Young

After the Second World War, when consumer issues first started receiving national attention, Louise Young was ready to step in and to help out. For over thirty years, as an extension specialist in family and consumer economics, she taught Wisconsin residents to manage their finances and to understand consumer issues.

Young developed an early interest in finances from her father, who was an independent oil producer and who sometimes discussed economics with her. Her mother was a teacher, and it became a natural career choice for Young. After graduating from the University of Illinois with a degree in Home Economics Education in 1932, Young taught for several years in Lawrenceville, Illinois. She then worked as the first home economics extension agent in Christian County, Illinois for four years. After being encouraged by her state leader to pursue a Masters degree, Young accepted an offer from the University of Missouri. While there she took courses in consumer economics and wrote a thesis on the use of consumer credit by farm families. After earning her MA in Family and Consumer Economics in 1941, she stayed on at Missouri as an instructor and supervisor of the home management house.

Young was appointed to the UW in 1945, and for the following three decades she traveled extensively throughout the state teaching people about a wide variety of financial issues. Initially her teaching focused on basic financial and estate planning, but later she expanded into areas such as consumer credit, record-keeping, and life insurance. She published a number of bulletins including "Family Estate Planning," "Our Family Records," "Savings and Investments," "Wise Use of Consumer Credit," and "Problems Facing Consumers."

Young also shared her expertise in financial matters with the people of Wisconsin through her extensive involvement in numerous organizations. In addition to serving in various capacities for the Wisconsin Home Economics Association, the American Home Economics Association, and the American Council on Consumer Interests, she was a charter member of the Wisconsin Consumer League, she was on the board of directors of the University of Wisconsin Credit Union, and she was the first woman member of the board of directors of the Madison Gas and Electric Company. Her service to the university includes her tenure as Acting Associate Dean of the School of Home Economics in 1968-69.