May Louise Cowles (September 25, 1892 – January 11, 1978) was an American economist, researcher, author, and advocate of Home Economics. She was a member of the faculty at the University of Wisconsin–Madison from 1915–1958. She had many submissions published in the "Journal of Home Economics", the "Journal of the American Dietetic Association", and "Rural Sociology". She also produced several widely read pamphlets, including "Meeting Housing Needs of Older People in Rural Areas (1957)", and spoke at a string of national seminars to encourage the addition of family economics to home economics instruction across the United States.