Oral History Program Desiree Cooper Larsen Interviewed by Kandice Harris 7 May 2019 Oral History Program Weber State University Stewart Library Ogden, Utah Desiree Cooper Larsen Interviewed by Kandice Harris 7 May 2019 Copyright © 2022 by Weber State University, Stewart Library Mission Statement The Oral History Program of the Stewart Library was created to preserve the institutional history of Weber State University and the Davis, Ogden and Weber County communities. By conducting carefully researched, recorded, and transcribed interviews, the Oral History Program creates archival oral histories intended for the widest possible use. Interviews are conducted with the goal of eliciting from each participant a full and accurate account of events. The interviews are transcribed, edited for accuracy and clarity, and reviewed by the interviewees (as available), who are encouraged to augment or correct their spoken words. The reviewed and corrected transcripts are indexed, printed, and bound with photographs and illustrative materials as available. The working files, original recording, and archival copies are housed in the University Archives. Project Description The Beyond Suffrage Project was initiated to examine the impact women have had on northern Utah. Weber State University explored and documented women past and present who have influenced the history of the community, the development of education, and are bringing the area forward for the next generation. The project looked at how the 19th Amendment gave women a voice and representation, and was the catalyst for the way women became involved in the progress of the local area. The project examines the 50 years (1870-1920) before the amendment, the decades to follow and how women are making history today. ____________________________________ Oral history is a method of collecting historical information through recorded interviews between a narrator with firsthand knowledge of historically significant events and a well-informed interviewer, with the goal of preserving substantive additions to the historical record. Because it is primary material, oral history is not intended to present the final, verified, or complete narrative of events. It is a spoken account. It reflects personal opinion offered by the interviewee in response to questioning, and as such it is partisan, deeply involved, and irreplaceable. ____________________________________ Rights Management This work is the property of the Weber State University, Stewart Library Oral History Program. It may be used freely by individuals for research, teaching and personal use as long as this statement of availability is included in the text. It is recommended that this oral history be cited as follows: Cooper Larsen, Desiree, an oral history by Kandice Harris, 7 May 2019, WSU Stewart Library Oral History Program, University Archives, Stewart Library, Weber State University, Ogden, UT. Desiree Cooper Larsen 7 May 2019 1 Abstract: The following is an oral history interview with Desiree Cooper Larsen, conducted on May 7, 2019, in the Archives Conference Room in the Stewart Library, by Kandice Harris. Desiree discusses her life, her memories at Weber State University, and the impact of the 19th Amendment. Alexis Stokes, the video technician is also present during this interview. KH: Today is May 7, 2019, we are with Desiree Cooper Larsen. My name is Kandice Harris, I will be doing the interview and Alexis Stokes will be filming the interview. When and where were you born? DCL: I was born in Provo, Utah, but raised in Lehi, Utah. Now it’s a thriving metropolis and it used to be a very small city, a very small town. Now it’s silicone slopes. KH: Would you talk a little bit about your early life and some historical background? DCL: I come from Lehi, it’s a farming community. I was raised on a ranch, therefore, I was very involved with horses. I rodeoed in high school, I went to the national high school finals in barrel racing. I used to tie goats and rope calves, barrel raced, and then I went to go on to become Miss Rodeo Utah, and that’s how I became involved with Ogden. That was my first experience really in coming and dealing with Ogden and I knew there was something very special about Weber State. When I was Miss Rodeo Utah I was coming across the Vidock on 24th street with my mother. I looked over at Weber State and I said, “I know I’m not attending Weber State, but something big is going to happen there for me.” I didn’t know what or where, but I was looking at the Dee Events Center and the 2 building against the mountain and I just knew that there was something that was going to happen that I was going to be involved here at Weber State. KH: Were you encouraged to pursue an education? DCL: I’m the first of my family to graduate and my brother and sister did attend college, but they never graduated. So I was the first and I think that’s what motivated me is that they didn’t complete their degrees and so I wanted to be the first even though I was the baby of the family. I went to Utah State University and then I was working in buying. I was a buyer for a clothing retail store and then I was a sales rep for a company. I had a teacher, her name was Rita Thompson. She really encouraged me to teach. I took over a couple of her classes when she was out on college business. I really liked it, so I thought, “Maybe this is something that I really want to do.” So I applied for a position at Utah Valley, which is now Utah Valley University. I received that position and then Weber State called and said, “There’s a position up here to teach fashion and sales.” I said, “Oh I already have a job, I’m sorry,” but I was grateful for the opportunity and the offer. Then I went to my new office before school started and the gentleman that was going to be my department chair scolded me for looking at another job. I looked at him before I even put my key in the door and I said, “You know, I haven’t looked at another job and I haven’t looked at the job at Weber, but I’m going to now.” So then I came to Weber and interviewed with John Burkes and Dan Litchford, and they were so kind and they really encouraged me to apply for the job. So I did, and my aunt that lived here in Ogden decided to move to California. She had a 3 contract on a condo and she had no one to take her contract for her. It all just fell into place, and that’s how I ended up here at Weber State, and that’s how I ended up in education. There was a two year fashion merchandising program and I was hired to coordinate that and to teach fundamental selling, and that’s how it all started. KH: You mentioned that you graduated from Utah State, what degrees do you have? DCL: I have a two-year fashion merchandising degree and then I have a marketing education degree and then I have a master’s degree in marketing. KH: What were some of the challenges while you obtained your degrees? DCL: I think the hardest was being disciplined, to study, and to know that I really wasn’t anticipating going on for another degree—continuing my education. That wasn’t really in my mind when I was in high school. I had to change my mindset that you are continually learning, you’re continually striving to be better and obtain information. I think the struggle was when I came to Weber State, I had a bachelor’s degree and they said, “You have three years to get your master’s degree.” I think that was the biggest shock, I went, “Okay, I just have to jump in.” So I jumped into the deep end, and in the college of applied science and technology, where now it’s the engineering applied science technology college. A terminal degree is master’s degree with five years work experience. I had my work experience in being a buyer and a sales rep. I had to get my master’s degree to stay in teaching. Then I’ve been selling ever since. KH: Were there other career options once you had your degree that you looked at? 4 DCL: Well, as I mentioned before, I did have a job at Utah Valley. I had a marketing opportunity to live in Texas and to continue on with a really elite custom design clothing manufacturer. Then I could have been in the modeling and fashion show production business, but I decided not to do any of those and I came to Weber State. KH: What mentors or resources did you have available to you in your program and in your career? DCL: The individual that I took her place, her name was Belva Post. She was a fascinating lady, and very organized, and detailed, and caring, and she was a mentor before I came. I knew her prior to coming to Weber State. Then when I did start at Weber State it was Carl Grunander, and Dan Litchford, and John Burks. That was in our department, then in reaching out and throughout the university, Judith Mitchell, which she just received an honorary degree. She was a very important person that mentored me throughout. Chloe Merrill another individual who is on campus that has done a lot for woman. And then Gene Sessions who is a really popular history teacher her at Weber State. So I have lots of people that I surrounded with myself with and that really took me under their wing, and mentored me, and groomed me, and worked with me to be able to do what I do now. So I attribute a lot of that to the mentors that I’ve had in the past. KH: What resistance or battles did you face as you progressed in your career? 5 DCL: I’m a baby boomer so I started here in ’84 and I like to tell people I was five years old when I started. But unfortunately, I was older. I was young and I’m a baby boomer. I think in what we do just throughout education it’s just really interesting in trying to relate to millennials or Y’s and what they see is common place for them. They can get in a car and they can tell someone to drive them two blocks, or five blocks, or five miles, and get out and never pay a dime and never get any type of cash exchange or receipt. No paper, get out of the car and be at a different destination and call a different person and return home. Where, I’m a baby boomer, so I’m so used to paper and the touch, and the feel and, “Don’t I get a receipt?” and, “Don’t I have to pay you cash?” I think one of the biggest obstacles for me is just putting myself in the students place to what their norm is, because my norm is so different than what their norm is. Actually, I feel sometimes that it’s kind of an injustice for millennials and “Y’s” that you don’t get that feel, that touchy feely, feel of writing or exchanging money. I guess that’s another, is money. Right now, millennial’s and Y’s, they don’t use money. We’ll be in the office and I’ll say, “Hey, does anyone have a dollar for the pop machine?” And they are all looking at me going, “A dollar? What is a dollar?” “Oh, can you venom me that?” And I’m going, “Oh, yeah, I guess so. Do you have any money in your wallet?” “No, I don’t have any money in my wallet.” So I give them a hard time about how when the world comes to the end, they’re going to want to be by me because I’m going to have cash, and dollar bills that we can barter with. I think that’s been the biggest it’s not a difficulty, it’s just wrapping my head around that we are so different in time and 6 what our norms are. I just have to remember that because it’s a whole different, I hate to say it, but it’s a whole different generation, and I never thought I’d say that because I like to keep up to date with what’s happening and what’s in. It is different. KH: What started your interest in professional sales and fashion? DCL: You know I’ve always been interested in fashion and when I was young I competed in high school rodeo because I was a rodeo queen and I was barrel racer. I didn’t like what was out there, so I tried to put things together that would have a little more punch to them or a little bit more statement or be a little bit more stylized. I think that’s what really drew me to the industry as fashion. Utah isn’t a thriving fashion metropolis, so when I came to Weber State, I would organize student tours to go to New York and try to get them exposed to fashion, and how it works, and the heartbeat of fashion. Nowadays, you can sit in your home and pick up, what used to take us weeks to get the information of the latest fashion or the latest trends. Now you can do it in an instant. So it’s changed, but at the time, I thought it was a good service to students to take them to an area that was just totally different than what they could experience here in Ogden. KH: What was Weber State like when you started? DCL: Let’s see. Weber State had a lot of older buildings. I’m sure maybe in some of the other histories that there’s building 1, 2, 3, and 4. Now those buildings have been torn down. I’ve been through a lot of presidents here at Weber State in my tenure. A lot of different changes as far as what their attitude or their direction in 7 how they were going to take Weber State in certain directions. It seems like we kind of do a little wave. We start in one direction and then maybe another president comes in and then we take down that direction and go in a different direction. But, the one thing that has stayed consistent and constant is that it’s for the student. That’s the thing I love about Weber State. That has never changed the entire time that I’ve been here is that we really are student oriented. Even though sometimes they might have a problem with registration or they might have a problem with parking. We really are focused on the student and especially in our program. We really believe that our students are like family. We take care of them and we see them through. That’s why our retention rate is so high. But as far as there has been physical changes in Weber State and the directions; sometimes we are a little bit more headed towards the direction of economic development, and other times we are headed in a direction of more research. But the main stay has always been the focus on the students. KH: How has the professional sales program changed over time? DCL: Well, we started 50 years ago, before my time here, as a two year program and then it evolved. When I started in ’84, they were starting the four year degree and it was called technical sales at the time. Then as we have progressed, it became so popular and so diversified that it was best to rename technical sales to professional sales so that it would encompass all of the many different backgrounds that we service. Because really there isn’t a degree on this campus that a student can’t apply a lot of our classes to. Whether they are in drama or whether they are in music, or business, or history, or archives. It’s all about 8 selling yourself and being able to sell what piece you’re trying to get across to people of what could be valued to them. It’s evolved as far as taking a program that was a two year program to now we are professional sales. We are in the University Sales Center Alliance which is a coalition of universities such as Purdue, Baylor, Florida State, North Carolina. They are universities that have come together, understanding that sales, and sales curricula is so important throughout all industries that it’s a new trend that’s happening and a new focus in all universities to create some type of selling program for students to learn. And then we have Allen E. Hall Center for Sales Excellence. Which is brining industry, and students, and academia together. So it pulls the three legs of the stool together in elevating and making our students very marketable throughout the entire country or even the world if they are as an international student. KH: What was the process to starting the Alan E. Hall Center for Sales Excellence? DCL: Al and I had lunch one day and he was talking about how he wanted a center that would be a focus for sales students but also a place for businesses to come and be able to interact and engage with the students. He challenged our department to do some research and to figure out how we could make this happen. We did research and we became a member of the University Sales Center Alliance, and it was in it’s infancy at the time, but it’s something that we have been doing, like I said, for 50 years now, and all of the sudden we just were opened up to a whole new world of innovative technologies, and research, and exchange with other institutions. And Alan and Jeanie were kind enough, and generous to donate to the Alan E. Hall Center for Sales Excellence. So that’s 9 what we have now that is something that really leads in the industry and the academics for all Sales Centers. We are one of those leaders. KH: What does a typical semester look like for you? DCL: It kind of depends: busy, crazy. We are required to teach 12 credit hours and I usually end up with 16 or 18, only because I have a lot of students who like to take classes online. We do face-to-face and online, and I want to make sure that they are able to take the classes. So, I will teach an overload to make sure that those classes are available for students. It’s kind of unique because I have them online and then I make them come in one day to do presentations, and make them feel a little nervous, and uncomfortable, and step outside of their box because I feel like if we can get them to really push themselves. Then their learning here, and it will make it so it’s a better transition for them when they are out there in the real industry. So it’s kind of crazy with the classes and how many students there can be—up to 50 usually in some of those classes. Then I’m always involved with the local community. I’ve been the chair of Ogden Pioneer Days. I was the first woman chair of Ogden Pioneer Days in 75 years. And now we are on our 85th year, our 85th anniversary. I’m now back to being the rodeo chair and the sponsor directory. I sell over a half-million to a million dollars’ worth a year in sponsorships and that keeps my skills tuned so that I can bring it into the classroom. I’m working on putting together one of the largest celebrations in the state of Utah through the entire year basically. It starts at the beginning of the July and it ends on July 24th and we have everything from cowboy poetry, to Miss Rodeo Utah, to a horse and hitch parade, the 24th 10 parade, 5 nights of rodeo, we have concerts, we have luncheons, we have something for everyone. We have downtown movies, we have the horses—if you’ve been in Ogden, and you’ve seen the life sized horses, we started that on the 75th anniversary and we just expand those every year, and it tells a story about Ogden, and our history, and our Pioneer’s. That’s something that people really enjoy, and we enjoy having for the community to represent who we are, to bring the historical value. And I’m very involved on a national level for women for the Miss Rode America Scholarship Foundation. We try to give scholarships to young women that have that western desire to continue, and they have the background and the education to continue bringing forth that western heritage, and what our ancestors brought forward. KH: What was it like being the first woman chairperson of the Ogden Pioneer Days? DCL: It was very interesting. Being the first woman chair… it’s a man’s world. I had to become very thick skinned, and square my shoulders, and step forward, and say, “This is how we are going to do it.” One thing that I’ve learned for anyone that is listening to this video, and is a woman, and you’re working in a man’s world, the best thing you can do is be confident in yourself, but start with numbers. If you are working with men, and you are in a board room, men respond to numbers, and so if you can start out with your statistics, and the ROI, and what it will really means, and how it will really effect, then you’ll be able to establish a credibility early in a meeting. That’s really what I learned is that I had to really step forward, and know my product, and know my direction, and what I wanted to do and be able to square my shoulders, and step forward, and stand firm. 11 KH: Will you talk a little bit about your time with Delta Epsilon Chi? DCL: Delta Epsilon Chi is a student organization. I was the advisor for 20 years and you compete on a local level, then a state level, and then they compete on an international level. For several years, I would work with students and train them. Role play, after role play, after role play, or try to give them experience of what they were going to experience on the local competition and then the state competition. And we’ve won several state titles, we have won several national titles, and we even had the international collegiate competition here at Salt Lake City. I sat on the national board, so we brought collegiate DECA to Salt Lake City, the national convention. It was a great experience because there are students at different levels. It’s DECA now, it’s called collegiate DECA now. Back then, it was called Delta Epsilon Chi. It provides a student no matter what level you are on, an experience. An experience that you can’t get any other way. Because it’s actually putting you into a competition environment. It’s making it so that you have to rely on your very own skills, one-on-one with a judge or a group of judges and you have to pull forward your experiences, your skills, what you’ve learned in the classroom, the academics, you have to apply the theory, and work through it. There’s the nerves and the tension, and it’s a great experience that I just would encourage any student that is attending a university to be involved in their student organizations. Because it’s priceless, it’s invaluable, you just cannot pay for that type of experience to put you in an environment that is almost real world for the fact that you are competing for jobs or positions or advancement in the real world. It was a great experience and I 12 love my students so much and it was so memorable. I have so many memories, and I can still remember their names, and what we did, and where we went, and how well they did. Weber State was always a university that was called out in the top ten in almost every event. KH: That’s great. DCL: Yeah, it was great. I had a great run. KH: What committees or organizations either on campus or outside of campus have you worked with? DCL: The committees that I’ve worked with on campus… I’ve been on faculty senate, I was on the executive board for faculty senate. I was reviewing some of my history here at Weber State and I was the chair of the first tracking committee in ’93 where we had Dr. Eagle come in and he did a presentation and then they put together a longitudinal computer program that would actually track the retention of students. Now I think we call it Starfish. But back then, they didn’t really have any programs that would actually captivate when a student started, how long they would stay in school, what year they would drop out, what were the reasons for them dropping out. So in 1993, we did the first tracking study. We had a committee, and then we brought in an expert, and they put together the first computer program that did the tracking for Weber State. Then I’ve been on a lot of promotional committees and department committees and in other departments review for tenure promotion and tenure review process. I’ve really kind of been very diversified in what I’ve done and I’ve loved every minute of it. 13 KH: Are there any organizations that are pertinent more to the professional sales and fashion side? DCL: As far as institutional? I think institutional the Entrepreneurship, the DECA—for students to be involved. I think institutionally our faculty members are very well diversified like for the Women’s Center for Diversity. We have one faculty member that does even a finance review for students to help them in budgeting and getting them through paying off student loan debt and making it profitable for them. I think our whole faculty is really involved but I do believe research is important along with the practical pieces that we put together for our students. Whether it be through the student organization or outside in the community, the projects that we do for outside community. KH: What topics have you written about? DCL: Most of my topics are on confidence or communication or presentations or fashion. Those are the ones that I’ve been involved with research. KH: What recognition have you received for your accomplishments? DCL: In my tenure at Weber State, I’ve been acknowledged as the Utah Marketing Educators Association Teacher of the Year, twice. Then within the department, Merit pay and promotions within the department of being recognized. KH: How have you become a mentor to others in your field? DCL: I really love working with the students and so there will be students that are very interested in sales or in fashion. One particular student that I mentored is now 14 one of our professors in our department, I have long lasting friendships and relationships with students and it’s interesting to watch them go through. I have a student now that is very interested in the fashion field so, we are working with a clothier to get him experience so, that he can go on and do his own line. I have student that has a jewelry line that you’ll see in Vogue magazine, or Elle, or Instagram, that I mentored. She started her own jewelry line in San Francisco and now she is St. George. I think that it’s a work in progress and it’s always something that I’m doing. It depends on the student, it depends on the situation. But I really truly believe that mentoring is very important for students. The ones that are really interested in it, they will work hard and you are proud to put your name on them, and to put them out there with the people that I know. And I’m willing to say, “You have my name on you. Here you go, take it and do well.” I had a student that really wanted to work in medical device so, he started with a company that they didn’t hire interns. They wouldn’t hire new students, but I called a friend of mine and said, “You have to work with this student, let him just come and do a non-paid internship.” And it was with GE and it was one of their largest X-Ray machines that they produce. Another student that is a sales rep for da Vinci which is the robot-operating machine that they use in surgeries. So there’s been a lot of students that I’ve worked with that I’ve connected with people because I’ve believed in and I’ve mentored them to the point where they can be in those positions. KH: What advice would you give to students and women starting in your field? 15 DCL: I would say face your fears. Whatever it might be, for some of our students it might be speaking in front of people and that’s a huge fear. It’s the number one fear for most people. So my suggestion would be to look at it, face it, step into it and do it. The more you do it, the better you are going to become. No matter what it is. So if numbers or math is a problem or a fear for you, then step into it and do it. I think STEM has been a great program for young women that has developed their skills so they are not afraid of science or technology or math or engineering. I believe that it has started in the younger grades, and I think that it is one of those things that should have been done a long time ago for women. Because there is nothing that we cannot do for women. I truly believe that whatever you believe in and you have passion for, that you should go for it. And there is a job there that you can work with, and it’s something that is there for you if you just will step out and do it, and do not be afraid. Our fears are the one thing that can hold us back. There’s nothing to be afraid of. It is the unknown, but once you do it, it’s not unknown, you know it. That’s the advice I would give to young women, just step forward, face your fears, and go forward. KH: What are some of your favorite memories here at Weber State? DCL: Wow there’s so many memories. I remember President Brady when I was here and we would go over to the Student Union Center, and it seemed like a lot of faculty at the time went over there, and we would have lunch and there were different places where you could have lunch. He would walk around and he would stop at every table, and talk to everyone. The comradery that our department had because we would always go to lunch together. We worked as a 16 team and as a family. I think that’s probably one of my favorite memories at Weber State is how close our department was. We were the best department on campus and everyone wanted to be a part of us. I think that the other thing that is a good memory for me is that it feels at home at Weber. I believe that everyone here is just here to support each other. Everyone is kind and very thoughtful and I believe that, that is something that you don’t necessary find on a lot of campuses. The bell tower is a favorite memory of mine. I was also part of the rebranding group in ’93 where they came up with the flying “W,” and I remember them asking me the question about the bell tower and I said, “It’s just iconic.” It’s the center of campus, and time is of the essence and you need to be grateful for every moment of every day, do something with it, and that’s what that bell tower reminds me of. It’s time, and whether it’s when you spend time with your peers, whether you spend time with your studies, whether you spend time with your family, it’s something that is iconic in everyone’s life. It’s so valuable because we don’t know how much time we have. Every day is a blessing and every minute of every day makes it so that you have to do something with it because you have it. I think that’s one of my favorite things about Weber State is the iconic bell tower. KH: Would you speak a little bit about your time as department chair? DCL: I have not been department chair. I have been the program coordinator for the fashion merchandising piece, but as far as department chair, I would never take that job. That’s how I feel about it. Department Chairs are so important but I am so involved in with so many different boards, and community events, and national 17 events. That I could not give the time that is necessary to be here and to make it the very best it could be. I’ve been asked to step into the position but I cannot add one more thing to my plate. KH: What are some of the community and national boards that you serve on? DCL: Miss Rodeo Utah, I’m the president of Miss Rodeo Utah Organization. The Ogden Pioneer Days chair, which is a full-time job. A lot of people just don’t understand, it’s just not like a rodeo. It is a whole celebration and so with that it’s huge. I work with CEO’s in the community, I meet with a CEO almost every other day in the community. I work with the mayor and the city council and the city planners on strategic events that happen. On the national board, I was the marketing director for the University Sale Center Alliance, I was on the national DECA board. Right now, I’m on the Miss Rodeo America National Advisory Board and the Miss Rodeo America Scholarship Foundation Board, then I’m on the PRCA Board. It’s kind of a crazy time, but it’s my life and I love it. What that has done is by me working with our community, is that it’s brought in those industries into our program, and it’s one of the reasons why we have the Alan E. Hall Center for Sales Excellence is that Alan and I worked very closely with the community events and all of his sons have graduate from our program. So when we talked about the sales center it was a natural fit for us to work with him, and for him and Jeanie to donate the money for us to create that sales center. Then I’ve done a national campaign for wrangler. I work with National Wrangler. I work with Camping World on a national level and do marketing promotions for 18 them, it’s crazy, but I love it and it’s interesting and it’s fun. But it allows me to intertwine the academic piece with industry and community. KH: You said that you did Miss Rodeo as a teenager, how has that program changed from then to now? DCL: They spend a lot more money. You know, I think with the age of technology and being able to get information quickly, it has really changed. I think that is also the same with academics, it parallels each other. When I went to school or in my era, you would come to the library and you would spend hour’s just trying find the right book to look through to find the research. Now, you have it the tips of your finger, and you can just ask Siri to find it and she finds it. You don’t even have to look it up, you can just ask Siri to do it. I think that’s really changed because I think young adults are smarter. You’re smarter, you’re quicker, because you have that access to all of this information and you have it quickly. You don’t have to take the time to do the research to find the book. In my era, if your library didn’t have the book, you had to call another library and have it shipped to that library, and you would have to wait a week to get the book to do the research. Now I think in academics, and when these girls are vying for this title, their knowledge of the world, and of civic events of just horse anatomy, or even sponsors, and what corporate sponsors are doing is amazing because they can get that access so quickly. KH: What is the process for Miss Rodeo? 19 DCL: For Miss Rodeo Utah? They compete on a local level. Then they are qualified to go onto the Miss Rodeo Utah competition, whether they are an attendant or whether they hold a title of some sort, or even if they have held a title in the past, they can compete. But the interesting thing about Miss Rodeo Utah that I think people really need to know is that these girls are walking dictionaries. Not only do they need to know political events and be able to answer questions in a political fashion that doesn’t offend. They become great politicians, so they don’t offend anyone, and they need to know every current event: nationally, state-wide, or local wide. They also need to know any trend or social economic piece that is happening that drives pop culture or drives the community. Then they need to know horse science. So a lot of them are reading and studying like a pre-vet student because they have to know not just the anatomy of the horse but they have to know the diseases of the horse, and then how to handle those diseases, and what outcomes would happen. Then they have to know the PRC which is the Professional Rodeo Cowboy Association. They have to know the cowboy, where their standing is, how much money is out there, the rodeos and how much money the rodeo adds to each rodeo. How much the cowboy is going to win at each rodeo. And then the statistics of the past, who has held the most world records, who has held the fastest time. So they are studying as if they are in a doctoral program, and they compete all week long. They start at 7 a.m. in the morning, they’ll have speeches in the morning where they have to give a speech. They are given a topic and they have to speak on it for three minutes. Just random. 20 Then they will have interviews and in these interviews they’ll have a personality interview which is anything from current events, to national events, to world events, to local events. They can be asked any of those questions and they need to have answer. Plus they need to know about themselves. You know, if they had to describe themselves as a color, what color would it be? So they get those random questions. Then they go to a horsemanship activity where they ride their own horse in a pattern and then they draw for a horse. So they ride another contestant’s horse and they have to ride a pattern. Then they end up at the rodeo that night and they have to either sell tickets, or chase cows, or work with sponsors. Then they have to go to fashion show practice. So they get to bed about 11:30. Then the next morning it starts all over again, and then they have another interview, which is a horsemanship interview, where the horse anatomy comes in or the horse science, if you will and they can be asked anything from what a shoe size is of a horse and why you would use that size, to an intestinal tract disease would be and how you would solve that intestinal tract disease. They all go all the way to 11 o’clock at night. They do that for a whole week. So it’s more than just looking good on a horse. It is not only being able to ride, but being able to speak, to be able to think quick on your feet and to have the knowledge to answer the questions. I really believe that any of those pageants because I was involved with the Miss Utah as well. I was Miss Lehi. Those pageants are the same, the difference is that for the state pageant of Miss Utah, they get one interview and they do a talent. For Miss Rodeo Utah, they have in essence, 21 three interviews plus a speech plus their horsemanship because they have another go around of horsemanship, so they will have three go arounds of horsemanship. Plus they have to work with sponsors or work with the crowd, and they are being evaluated the whole time for five days. It is a lot more than what people really think that these girls are doing. And then they’ve got to put those outfits together that are amazing, and we’ve worked with national designers for Miss Rodeo Utah. We’ve started a couple of national designers to where they are the top designers because our Miss Rodeo Utah started wearing their clothing first. So it kind of all ties together as far as the fashion and the knowledge and the horsemanship, but it is a feat. When you see a Miss Rodeo Utah you know that this is a girl that has really studied very hard and probably worked for this title for 15 years since she was a little girl to be able to win that title. It’s exciting. KH: How do you think women receiving the right to vote shaped or influenced history, your community, and you personally? DCL: You know I find it interesting that it almost took 100 years for women to be able to vote. You see the struggles that women still have today, and the ideal thing that if everyone would just see people, and they wouldn’t see gender, and they wouldn’t see sexual preference, and they wouldn’t see color. We are just people. Everyone wants the same thing. Everyone wants to be loved and they want to be valued. I don’t think there is anyone out there that doesn’t want that and that’s what we need to look at. I know it’s very idealistic but in my mind I do not see gender, and I do not see color, or sexual orientation. It’s a person. 22 Everyone is a person. If you have the ability to do a job, you should be able and allowed to be paid the highest level, and to do the job. I’m not a solid complete feminist but I am about a person that has the qualities to do a job. It doesn’t matter if she is a female or if she’s a male or if she is of color or sexual orientation. It’s if you have the skills and the passion to do the job. So the right for women to vote—we still struggle with those issues for women to be able to break through. It’s a mindset that we have to change society. Women are capable and more capable in a lot of cases than people who are holding certain positions. But women need to continue to stand up for themselves and to fight for what they believe in. It’s interesting that when I was trying out for Miss Rodeo Utah, the question I received is who is it that they wanted to put on the coin. That was in 1979, and the answer was Susan B. Anthony. It’s amazing of the women that have gone before us, that have fought for us to be where we are. But we do need to continue that fight. But we need to do it in a way where we all the same in the fact that we all want the same thing out of life. But the right person that has the right skill needs to be in those positions. The right to vote— it’s Ludacris to me to think that women had to fight so hard to vote. You are seeing now that women are CEO’s of companies, women are extremely capable and women are far more detailed than men. It is the women behind even a great man, that if there is man sitting out front as the icon, behind that great man is a great woman. There is no reason that that woman can’t be forward. No reason. It’s so true, women are into the detail of the napkins. They look at the stitching 23 on a napkin, men do not. So therefore, we have so much value to add and we don’t need to do it in a defensive way. We don’t, we just need to do what we can do and do our jobs. If you do your job in the way that you are meant to do it, and the skills that you have, you don’t have anything to prove because you are already there. However, you do need the opportunity. You need the opportunity to show that you can do those things. I’m a believer in that. I’m a true believer in that. KH: Is there anything else you’d like to add? DCL: I love Weber State, I’ve loved my time at Weber State. I have been very blessed. I’ve been blessed with great friends, great coworkers, great students, faculty, administration, and staff. I have just been so blessed with so many things at Weber State and I know that I was meant to be here. I have great relationships that I value and that are 35 years old that I started here. I hope that I have contributed to their success, to student success to the students that I have taught. I hope that I’ve contributed to some way in their lives to make them better. KH: Great thank you.