Barclay, Nancy Ann

Nancy Ann Barclay, of Blacksburg, Va., departed this life on Saturday, October 11, 2008. A “firecracker baby,” she was born in Canonsburg, Pa., on July 4, 1929, to Louise Gowern and Frank Henderson Barclay. She is survived by her brother, William Frank Barclay, of Blacksburg, and his children Jill and Will, and their families.

Nancy grew up in Canada, graduating from Welland High and Vocational School in Welland, Ont., Canada. In 1951, she earned a BS in home economics from Carnegie Institute of Technology. She was a home service representative with a gas company and taught high school home economics. In 1963, she earned a MS from Pennsylvania State University. In 1963, she became an Assistant Professor at the University of Manitoba in Winipeg, Manitoba, Canada. She earned her doctoral degree from The Ohio State University in 1970 and was appointed as an Associate Professor at Southern Illinois University. Dr. Barclay became Head of Virginia Tech’s Department of Management, Housing and Family Development in 1973. She continued her research in family time management, and advised undergraduate, masters, and doctoral students from across the globe on research topics ranging from time and money management to consumer education of teachers. Her students went on to success in diverse careers including as faculty and administrators at universities and international organizations. Her leadership in Virginia Tech’s study abroad program to Finland resulted in students going to Finland and Finnish students completing graduate study at VT. The University of Helsinki awarded her an honorary doctoral degree. She hosted faculty from Bogor Agricultural University in Indonesia, was a visiting scholar there, and advised graduate students who returned there as administrators. She was especially involved in college and university committees and actively supported Cooperative Extension. A committed member of a number of professional organizations, she served as president of the Virginia Home Economics Association. In 1994,Virginia Tech recognized her as Professor Emeritus when she retired after 21 years of significant leadership and outstanding service. She was an active member of Blacksburg United Methodist Church and served as chair of the board of the Wesley Foundation at Virginia Tech.

Memorial donations may be made to the Virginia Tech Foundation earmarked for the AHRM Resource Management Program or to the Blacksburg United Methodist Church. Funeral services will be held 3 p.m. on Thursday, October 16, 2008, at McCoy Funeral Home and burial at Westview Cemetery. The family will receive friends from 5 to 7 p.m. on Wednesday, October 15, 2008, at McCoy Funeral Home, 150 Country Club Drive, S.W., Blacksburg, Va.