From the 1920’s to the 1950's, college home economics programs across the country set up ‘practice homes' where students set up temporary residence. The women were graded on their ability to live cooperatively, keep a tidy home, and plan meals.  

On some campuses, this domestic practice was taken a step further.  Schools would obtain temporary custody of babies from orphanages or child welfare departments and move the children into the practice home. The students would then raise the baby in shifts, each taking a turn to act as the house ’mother.’ 

After a year or two, the babies would be put up for adoption. While potential parents considered these ‘scientifically raised’ babies particularly desirable, the practice died out as educators and government authorities began to worry about the effects of having so many people involved in a child’s early life.