“And we need you now!”

Science and technology played a pivotal role in World War II (WWII), marking the first coordinated efforts by many countries to train women in scientific fields to support the war effort. Previous scholarship often portrays the war as an event that, at least temporarily, expanded opportunities for women in science education. This dissertation investigates how and to what extent WWII transformed women’s science education in the U.S. and Japan. Focusing on the fields of engineering and home economics, it draws on extensive archival collections from both countries.