Elsie Wilson Gwynne

Born in Renwick, Iowa, in 1895, she earned a B.S. from Iowa State in 1918. After teaching in high school, she returned to Iowa State in 1925 and taught applied art until 1933, building a career around the connection between art, homemaking, and practical education.

She is best known as a co-author of The Teaching of Art Related to the Home, a work that explored how art instruction could support home economics education. Other records also credit her with co-authoring books on art education for daily living and adult homemaking education, showing a consistent interest in bringing thoughtful design into everyday family life.

Iowa State later recognized her lasting place in its history by naming Gwynne House for her. She died in 1968, but her work still reflects an appealing idea: that good design belongs in ordinary life and can be taught in clear, useful ways.