Oral history interview with Kathleen Kinley conducted by Jamie Quashnock on December 13, 2007 for the Public School Principalship Oral History Project. In this interview, Kinley reflects upon her 34-year career in education, with 14 years as a teacher and 20 years as an administrator in the Clark County School District. She discusses her job duties as teacher, assistant principal, principal, and assistant superintendent, and how the positions compare with each other. She also discusses the importance of self-care and leisure time as a balance to the demanding workload.
Hailing from Indiana and California, Donna Guiffre Martin and Tom Martin came to Las Vegas in the early 1950s as their parents sought new opportunities. Donna's father, Gus Guiffre, quickly established himself as a local television personality, while Tom's father took on a variety of entrepreneurial opportunities. Like many of the young people in Las Vegas, Donna and Tom enjoyed riding around town; horse-back riding; football games; Helldorado - and, of course, Rancho High School. This interview covers both Donna and Tom's early years before their moves to Las Vegas, as well as their memories of first homes, childhood experiences, early adulthood and their current lives.
On August 9, 1984, collector Elizabeth N. Patrick recorded an address by local long time educator, Harvey N. Dondero (born November 12, 1909 in Hawthorne, Nevada) before the Kiwanis Club at the Fremont Hotel in Las Vegas. This address includes Dondero’s observations on the growth of the school system in Las Vegas, Nevada. After the address, Dondero receives a Distinguished Service Award, from the Kiwanis Club of Uptown Las Vegas, as a token of appreciation for his fifty-three years of dedication to children and youth education in Nevada. Dondero also answers questions posed by audience members, regarding the future of Nevada’s education system.
Barbara Cloud was born in Tulare, California. Her father's job kept the family on the move for the first seven years of her life. They eventually settled in Idaho Falls, Idaho, where Barbara attended grade school and high school. After graduation, Barbara applied to three universities and was accepted at all three. She chose Stanford and decided to major in journalism. It was while at Stanford that she also met and married her husband Stan. Stan and Barbara moved to California, where Barbara got a job working on a weekly Sunday supplement. After a year and a half, they returned to Oregon and Barbara decided to get her master's in journalism. She was given a graduate assistantship at the University of Oregon, and completed the degree in two years. In 1969, Stan agreed to accept a post doctoral assignment in Australia, and Barbara found a job with an advertising agency. After six years, the couple returned to Oregon, and Barbara decided to apply to the University of Washington for a PH.D. in journalism. She was admitted, given a graduate assistantship, and completed the work in three years. In 1978, Barbara applied for a journalism position at UNLV. She was hired, and she and Stan moved to Las Vegas in 1979. She built up the journalism program and continued with her research. In 1983, she became department chair, a position she was elected to each year for the next six years. She was the editor of "Journalism History", published her own book, and was associate provost for academic affairs. Barbara is retired today, though still connected with the School of Journalism. She is planning to teach a distance education course.
Gordon Smith was born in Utah, but moved with his family to Babbitt, Nevada in 1947. His father, a barber, moved the family to Las Vegas in 1955. In this interview, Gordon recalls school and after-school pursuits; changes in the town; summer jobs; and college. He also talks about his military service and returning to Las Vegas to take up the razor himself - starting a successful barbering business of over 30 years.