Oral history interview with Dr. Javier A. Rodríguez conducted by Elsa Lopez and Barbara Tabach on December 19, 2019 for the Latinx Voices of Southern Nevada Oral History Project. Dr. Javier Rodríguez, Biology Professor at the University of Nevada Las Vegas, talks of his personal and educational history that led him to UNLV. He discusses his migration from Puerto Rico to California where he received his PhD from the University of California Berkley and became a biological museum curator for various animal specimens. He later moved to Las Vegas to teach at UNLV where he has now been for nearly two decades; Dr. Rodríguez shares how UNLV has changed since he first started working here, including the university's increased interest in faculty research to become a Top Tier institution. Subjects discussed include: Puerto Rico; University of California Berkley; University funding; Tier 1 research institutions.
Yearbook main highlights: schools and departments; detailed lists with names and headshots of faculty, administration and students; variety of photos from activities, festivals, campus life, and buildings; campus organizations such as sororities, fraternities and councils; beauty contest winners; college sports and featured athletes; and printed advertisements of local businesses; Institution name: University of Nevada, Las Vegas
Yearbook main highlights: schools and departments; detailed lists with names and headshots of faculty, administration and students; variety of photos from activities, festivals, campus life, and buildings; campus organizations such as sororities, fraternities and councils; beauty contest winners; college sports and featured athletes; and printed advertisements of local businesses; Institution name: University of Nevada, Las Vegas
Oral history interviews with June Monroe and Kazuko Atomura conducted by Cecilia Winchell and Stefani Evans on July 14 and July 19, 2022 for Reflections: the Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project. In the first interview, Kazuko Atomura describes her childhood in Taiwan and Tokyo, Japan, and shares both happy and difficult mememories of that time. Atomura eventually moved to Los Angeles, California, where she reconnected with a man she previously met in Japan. She married him and together had their daughter, June Monroe, and another son while living in Corpus Christi, Texas. After difficult medical procedures involving Atomura's husband and Monroe's younger brother, Brian, the family relocated to Las Vegas, Nevada. Monroe recalls attending Las Vegas High School and Bonanza High School, and the struggle of making new friends as a young person. In the second interview, the mother and daughter discuss racism, discrimination, and identity. Kazuko Atomura recalls her many experiences with discrimination as a result of both her appearance and language barriers. June Monroe discusses how she came to be proud of her Japanese heritage, while Atomura discusses some of the community activities she has been involved in since living in Las Vegas including the Japanese Culture Club and odori dancing. Then, both Atomura and Monroe discuss Monroe's brother, Brian, who received two kidney transplants; one from Monroe's father and one from Monroe herself. Atomura talks about the shrines she has built for Brian, the experience of him being on dialysis, care taking, and his final days. Monroe shares about her activism with organ donation, being regularly involved with the Nevada Donor Network and helping to pass significant pieces of legislation within the area of organ donation.