Oral history interviews with Bernice Jaeger conducted by Joanne L. Goodwin on July 25, 1997, July 30, 1997 and February 03, 1998 for the Women's Research Institute of Nevada (WRIN) Las Vegas Women Oral History Project. Jaeger begins the interviews by discussing her introduction to the hotel industry while attending Clark County Community College in the 1970s. Jaeger discusses working at the Rivera Hotel and Casino, Aladdin Hotel and Casino, and Continental Hotel and Casino, her experiences at these properties, and the important people associated with them. Jaeger describes how the increase in availability of hotel management programs at universities in the 1980s opened up the industry to women. Jaeger also talks about how many people in the Las Vegas, Nevada hotel and gaming industry came from Kentucky, where the gaming industry was only partially legal. Finally, Jaeger discusses her family life and raising her children.
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Oral history interview with Linda Rivera conducted by Layne Karafantis on October 02, 2009 for the Women's Research Institute of Nevada (WRIN) Las Vegas Women Oral History Project. Rivera opens her interview by discussing her youth as a Latina in Arizona in the 1960s. Rivera then talks about schooling conditions and discrimination. She describes her first job at the Solomon Bill School District and, while there were many Hispanic students, there were not many Hispanic teachers or student leaders. Rivera then describes moving to Nevada in 1986 and searching for Hispanic culture in Las Vegas, Nevada. Rivera discusses the formation of the Hispanic Roundtable, an organization that develops Hispanic leadership in Nevada. She also talks her work to make the Clark County School District more accessible to working families and her awards and recognition within the Latinx community.
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Oral history interviews with Myrna Williams conducted by Suzanne Becker and Joanne L. Goodwin on April 16, 2008, April 21, 2008, and June 15, 2009 for the Women's Research Institute of Nevada (WRIN) Las Vegas Women Oral History Project. Williams begins her interview discussing her family and their performance background. Williams then discusses moving to Las Vegas, Nevada from New York with her young family. Williams describes her involvement with the local Democratic party and work on election campaigns. She also talks about her work to create a legitimate social work program at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV). Williams also describes her ten year tenure on the Nevada State Assembly and her time on the Clark County Commission. Lastly, she talks about her community activism in the Public Education Foundation and Anti-Defamation League.
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Oral history interviews with Irene Porter conducted by Angela Moor on November 06, 2009, November 20, 2009, and January 29, 2010 for the Women's Research Institute of Nevada (WRIN) Las Vegas Women Oral History Project. Porter begins her interview discussing her childhood in North Dakota in the 1940s including her experiences growing up on military bases and her father's military career. Porter then discusses moving to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1959 and her experiences at Rancho High School. Porter describes her classes, social activities, and community. Porter then talks about her career and experiences at the Clark County Planning Department including the activities the Department was responsible for, learning to write grants, the glass ceiling, and how she eventually became Director. Porter goes on to discuss working for the City of North Las Vegas and lobbying for the state of Nevada.
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Oral history interview with Toni Clark conducted by Joanne L. Goodwin on July 02, 1996 for the Women's Research Institute of Nevada (WRIN) Las Vegas Women Oral History Project. Clark opens her interview describing her childhood in Seattle, Washington. Clark then discusses moving to San Diego, California in 1941 and becoming a waitress at the Monte Carlo bar and restaurant. Clark then discusses how war rationing affected daily life and the nightclub industry. Clark then talks about marrying Wilbur Clark, moving with him to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1944, and the history of the El Rancho Vegas. Clark discusses the opening of the Monte Carlo Club, living in Las Vegas in the 1950s, and the opening of the Desert Inn Hotel. Clark goes on to describe the management of the Desert Inn, the food, and lounges. Clark then mentions the celebrities she has met and entertained, and the opening of the Flamingo Hotel.
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Oral history interview with Arturo Amaya conducted by Laurents Banuleos-Benitez, Barbara Tabach and Genoveva Yuli Amaya on December 05, 2018 for the Latinx Voices of Southern Nevada Oral History Project. Arturo Amaya discusses his early life in Peru, sharing stories of his family history and early life. He recalls his education and law school in Peru, as well as his legal career. Amaya was elected into to district attorney, and he discusses his experiences working in the criminal justice field in Peru. After visiting his brother in Las Vegas, Nevada, Amaya decided to immigrate with his family to Las Vegas in 2003. In Las Vegas, Amaya is a painter by trade, but was instrumental in establishing the Peruvian Association in Las Vegas. Genoveva Yuli Amaya also participates in the interview. Genoveva shares more of the Amaya family history from her point of view. She also shares her knowledge of Peruvian cultural traditions.
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Oral history interview with Kenneth Bedrosian conducted by Ann Fredrickson on April 29, 2004 for the Public School Principalship Oral History Project. In this interview, Bedrosian discusses his upbringing in Rhode Island and educational background. He then discusses his move to Las Vegas, Nevada in the early 1970s and his first teaching position at Rancho High School in 1973. He then discusses his transition to administration with his move to a Dean’s position at Clark High School, before becoming principal at Cimarron-Memorial High School in the early 1990s. He also discusses his job duties as principal, training development, challenges that he faced as an administrator, and his views on contemporary trends within the Clark County School District and the United States educational system. He also discusses challenges that administrators face, such as school violence and overcrowding, and his suggestions for principals to be successful administrators in light of these challenges.
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Oral history interview with Sarah Ortiz conducted by Rodrigo Vazquez on December 20, 2019 for the Latinx Voices of Southern Nevada Oral History Project. In this interview, Ortiz discusses being born and raised in Austin, Texas and spending the majority of her life there before attending the Columbia Publishing Course in Manhattan, New York. Ortiz describes her family's many moves throughout the city of Austin and the changes that have since happened in the city. Ortiz recounts her trajectory in the publishing industry, which led her from Manhattan back to Austin, and eventually to Las Vegas, Nevada. Ortiz is currently the program and festival director for The Believer magazine and the Black Mountain Institute. She writes about what she and her colleagues hope to achieve with the magazine and annual festival, and about the changes that she hopes to see for Las Vegas' publishing and literacy industry.
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Oral history interview with Fernando Rocha conducted by Nathalie Martinez and Barbara Tabach on November 13, 2019 for the Latinx Voices of Southern Nevada Oral History Project. In this interview, Fernando Rocha recalls growing up in Santa Ana, California and in Sunrise Manor in Las Vegas, Nevada. Fernando Rocha is a Mexican professional who is committed to giving back to the Latinx youth of Las Vegas. He talks about his responsibility as a translator in his family with his siblings. He credits his academic and professional success to the Clark County School District and programs such as GEAR UP and Upward Bound. After studying at Hofstra University, he came back to Las Vegas to work with Wells Fargo and is an active community member as co-founder of the Nevada Youth Coalition and work through the Association of Latino Professionals for America (ALPFA) and Nevada Promise Mentor at the College of Southern Nevada (CSN).
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Oral history interviews with Jimmy Wilkins conducted by Lisa Gioia-Acres on May 30, 2008 and September 15, 2008 for the All That Jazz Oral History Project. In these interviews, Wilkins discusses his career as a jazz trombonist. He begins by talking about his upbringing in St. Louis, Missouri, his early interest in being a musician, learning to play the trombone in high school, and later enlisting in the United States Navy to play in Navy bands. Wilkins describes leaving the Navy after World War II ended and continuing his musical career by joining jazz bands in the St. Louis area, playing across the United States with traveling bands, and eventually moving to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1994. He talks about playing jazz in casinos such as the Four Queens and the Riviera, the current jazz culture in Las Vegas, and his retirement.
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