Ava B. Milam came to OAC in 1911 and was appointed the Dean of the School of Home Economics in 1917, serving for 33 years. She was primarily interested in the study of home economics within Asian cultures. During WWI she was appointed as the Home Economics director for Oregon.
Clara Waldo served on the State board of Regents in both Oregon and California. She became the first woman in America to be named on the board of Regents in a state instution of higher learning. In 1911 she worked as the Dean of Extension in Domestic Science at OAC with no compensation and received an honoary Doctorate of Science from OAC in 1923.