Dorothy and George Jacobson

Inducted: 1982

Dorothy and George Jacobson worked individually and jointly to promote and develop cooperatives. A professor of economics, Dorothy saw to it that a Wisconsin law mandated schools to teach about cooperatives; then she wrote the textbook. George formed local oil cooperatives and helped found Midland Cooperatives (now a part of Land O’ Lakes). He and Dorothy organized Group Health Association of St. Paul. In the 1960s, George joined the U.S. Agency for International Development, where he facilitated the formation of several thousand cooperatives and credit unions. Dorothy, as Assistant Secretary of Agriculture for International Affairs, helped initiate the Food for Peace program, PL 480, for hunger relief and cooperative development. She was also the U.S. representative to the United National Food and Agriculture Organization.