Search Results

Oral history interview with Mike A. Foster conducted by Heather Christopherson on March 20, 2002 for the Public School Principalship Oral History Project. In this interview, Foster reflects upon his 25-year career as a teacher and administrator with Arizona’s Douglas Unified School District. He discusses the process by which he became an administrator, and describes training and experiences that he feels were most useful for his career. He describes his approach to education, his regular responsibilities, and challenges that he faced as a principal. He also provides his opinion on student ethics and discipline, school overcrowding, teacher evaluations, and dismissals.

Oral history interview with Brian O. Fox conducted by Cheryl S. Herr on June 16, 2006 for the Public School Principalship Oral History Project. In this interview, Fox reflects upon his 30-year career as a teacher and administrator with the Clark County School District (CCSD) from the 1960s to the 1990s. He discusses his upbringing in Boulder City, Nevada, and the process by which he became principal of Boulder City High School in 1980. He describes his daily responsibilities as principal, as well as challenges and stressors that he faced. He also discusses his working relationship with assistant principals, and expectations that each position faced.

Oral history interview with Eva G. Simmons conducted by Khary D. Black on May 04, 2004 for the Public School Principalship Oral History Project. In this interview, Simmons reflects upon her 27 years as an administrator with Nevada’s Clark County School District (CCSD). She describes the process by which she became a teacher and eventually an administrator, and discusses the significance of the Teacher Advisory Committee in the development of her philosophy of school administration. She discusses student ethics, corporal punishment, cultural diversity, and bilingual programs within the school district, in addition to challenges that she faced from public entities and parents.

Oral history interview with Alice Wisdom conducted by Elizabeth Goodman on October 13, 2003 for the Public School Principalship Oral History Project. In this interview, Wisdom reflects upon her career as a teacher and administrator in Texas and Nevada. She describes the process by which she first became a teacher in Texas, and then the Bahamas in the 1970s. She then discusses how she was hired to teach in Nevada’s Clark County School District in 1979 before eventually being appointed as principal of various elementary and middle schools. She describes her approach to school administration and working relationships, and discusses colleagues who impacted her throughout her career.

Oral history interview with Dr. Claude N. Warren conducted by Claytee D. White on March 1, 2007 for the UNLV @ 50 Oral History Project. In this interview, Warren discusses his early life in Washington state and some of the hardships his family encountered. Warren then talks about the city of Seattle, Washington and he expresses his general admiration for the western United States. He speaks about his time as a graduate student and working at University of California, Los Angeles. He then explains the different types of archaeology, including cultural resource management and academic archaeology. Warren then describes his career path, different academic positions he was offered, and his time as a professor in the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) Anthropology Department. Lastly, Warren briefly discusses UNLV past presidents Zoran and Maxson and his thoughts about the future of the university.

Oral history interviews with David Parks conducted by Dennis McBride on February 16 and 21, 2000 and January 31, 2007 for the Las Vegas Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Archives Oral History Project. In the first interviews, Parks talks about his early life in Boston, Massachusetts, his education, and his service with the United States Air Force, where he was stationed at Nellis Air Force Base in Las Vegas, Nevada in 1967. Parks then recalls understanding his sexuality during his military service and policies regarding gay military personnel. He remembers coming out as gay in 1972, when he attended the University of Nevada, Las Vegas and worked for the City of Las Vegas as a computer operator. He then talks about getting involved with politics, his involvement with gay support organizations including Aid for AIDS of Nevada, and his experiences running as the first openly gay Nevada State Assemblyman in 1996.

In the 2007 interview, Parks, a member of the Nevada senate, discusses working on a Nevada anti-bullying bill and a family fairness bill, which stated that any two persons could have another person as a recipient beneficiary. Park describes dealing with opposition to the family fairness bill with some people arguing that it changes the traditional definition of family. Parks recalls running against a man with a similar name, David F. Parks, in a 2002 legislative assembly election. Digital audio and transcript available.

Oral history interviews with Nancy Houssels conducted by Caryll Batt Dziedziak on November 18, 1998, December 07, 1998, and December 14, 1998 for the Women's Research Institute of Nevada (WRIN) Las Vegas Women Oral History Project. Houssels begins her interviews discussing her childhood in California and the influence World War II had on her upbringing. Houssels then talks about her dance training and career including topics on her auditions, her dance partners, and touring Europe in the 1960s. Houssels describes coming to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1968 where she was booked as a dancer in Folies Bergere at the Tropicana Hotel. Houssels then discusses the influences Mormonism and adiago ballet had on her life. Houssels then describes how she co-founded the Nevada Ballet Theatre with Vassili Sulich, performances of the company, their dancers, and community outreach.