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Show Utah, Nevada Adopt New Chicano, Indian Texts Textbooks and curricular materials highlighting the contributions cf Chicanos in Utah and Indians in Nevada have been adopted by the public school systems in the two states. The adoptions mark what is believed to be the first curricular offering dealing specifically with a minority group history in either state. The materials were developed with the assistance of the American West Center at the University of Utah. One of the publications details the history of Spanish speaking people in Utah. It will begin making Its way Into seventh grade classrooms in various parts of the state this fall. "We hope it will whet the appetite of students to learn more about these people," explained Vicente J. Mayer Jr., an articulate young Chicano who edited the textbook, "Utah: A Hispanic History." Several school districts, including Salt Lake City, expressed interest in. the book even before its recent completion. Others along the Wasatch Front, where most of Utah's 43,000 residents with Spanish surnames reside, are expected to use the text. The Utah State Board of Education has made an initial purchase of 2,000 copies of the hardbound publication which treats Hispanic history from the arrival of Columbus in the New World to the Chicano movement. Dr. S. Lyman Tyler, director of the American West Center, said the textbook U the only one of its kind ever made available in Utah on a statewide basis and was primarily produced by Chicanos themselves. An early motivator of the project was Dr. Orlando J. Rivera, an associate academic vice president at the U, who feels it will give young Chicano . . students a good self-image by relating "positive contributions by their people to the area's history." In addition to the textbook, the educational materials include a filmstrip and a teacher's supplement and workbook. We hope this is just the beginning of research on the history of minority groups and the contributions they made," said Joe Sandoval, a multicultural specialist for the State Board of Education. Much of the textbook material was obtained from the American West Center's extensive bank of oral interviews with minority groups in Utah and other parts of the West. For example, there are taped interviews with 165 Mexican-American immigrants. The second project will introduce the history of the Northern and Southern Paiutes, Washo and Shoshone or Goshute Indians into Nevada public schools. Winona Holmes, historian for the Inter-Tribal council of Nevada, says the research and writing for the project has , contributed to both the Indian and scholarly communities. "The Nevada tribes now possess a unique and complete collection of basic materials which could prove to be of inestimable value in both legal research and future curriculum development," said Ms. Holmes. A history of the Walker River has been completed and other publications are in their final stages of completion. They were written by tribal members u nder the direction of the tribal council. Workshops have been held in Utah and Nevada to acquaint teachers with the material and to offer suggestions on how it should be presented to the junior high students. mmt |