Finding Aid for the Vahac Mardirosian papers, 1964-2007 LSC.1887

Finding aid prepared by Yasmin Damshenas in the Center for Primary Research and Training (CFPRT), with assistance from Kelley Wolfe Bachli and Megan Hahn Fraser, December 2011; machine-readable finding aid created by Caroline Cubé.
The processing of this collection was generously supported by Arcadia  funds.
UCLA Library Special Collections
© 2011
Room A1713, Charles E. Young Research Library
Box 951575
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1575
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Contributing Institution: UCLA Library Special Collections
Title: Vahac Mardirosian papers
Creator: Vahac Mardirosian
Identifier/Call Number: LSC.1887
Physical Description: 3.75 Linear Feet (7 document boxes and 1 half document box)
Date (inclusive): 1964-2007
Abstract: Reverend Vahac Mardirosian has been a major advocate of Mexican-American educational reforms in Los Angeles and San Diego school districts since the early 1960s. This collection contains material related to his pastoral work, his involvement with the 1968 East Los Angeles walk-out demonstration and organizations he helped found and run, including the Hispanic Urban Center Board of Education (founded 1970) and Parent Institute for Quality Education (founded 1987). Materials include clippings and press releases, letters and statements, notes, sermons, evaluation reports, reading score percentiles and rankings, memoranda, fact sheets and administrative documents, and cover a wide variety of educational topics including bilingual education, integration, teachers' attitudes towards Mexican American students, parental involvement, and reading achievement.
Physical Location: Stored off-site. All requests to access special collections material must be made in advance using the request button located on this page.
Language of Material: Materials are in English.

Restrictions on Access

Open for research. All requests to access special collections materials must be made in advance using the request button located on this page.

Restrictions on Use and Reproduction

Property rights to the objects belong to UCLA Library Special Collections. All other rights, including copyright, are retained by the creators and their heirs. It is the responsibility of the researcher to determine who holds the copyright and pursue the copyright owner or his or her heir for permission to publish where The UC Regents do not hold the copyright.

Provenance/Source of Acquisition

Gift of Vahac Mardirosian, 2011.

Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], Vahac Mardirosian papers (Collection 1887). UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, University of Caliofnria, Los Angeles.

Processing Note

Processed by Yasmin Damshenas in the Center for Primary Research and Training (CFPRT), with assistance from Kelley Wolfe Bachli and Megan Hahn Fraser, December 2011.
The processing of this collection was generously supported by Arcadia  funds.
Collections are processed to a variety of levels depending on the work necessary to make them usable, their perceived user interest and research value, availability of staff and resources, and competing priorities. Library Special Collections provides a standard level of preservation and access for all collections and, when time and resources permit, conducts more intensive processing. These materials have been arranged and described according to national and local standards and best practices.
We are committed to providing ethical, inclusive, and anti-racist description of the materials we steward, and to remediating existing description of our materials that contains language that may be offensive or cause harm. We invite you to submit feedback about how our collections are described, and how they could be described more accurately, by filling out the form located on our website: Report Potentially Offensive Description in Library Special Collections.  

UCLA Catalog Record ID

UCLA Catalog Record ID: 9969467903606533 

Biography

Reverend Vahac Mardirosian has been a leading advocate of educational reform in Southern California, especially in the Mexican American communities, since the late 1960s. Of Armenian descent, he was born in Alepo, Syria and raised in Mexico City and Tijuana. He became ordained as a Baptist priest in California in 1946 and went on to serve the Mexican American communities of Topeka and Chicago, before returning to California in the 1950s. In 1968 he became involved with the walk-out protests at Garfield High School in the East Los Angeles School District. He acted as a mediator with administrators and became a representative of parents and students in his role as chairman of the Educational Issues Coordinating Committee (EICC).
He founded and acted as executive director of the Hispanic Urban Center in Los Angeles in 1970, which focused on in-service education for teachers, seeking to enhance their perceptions of Mexican American culture and improve teacher/student relations. In 1987 Mardirosian started the Parent Institute for Quality Education (PIQE) to address underperforming schools in the San Diego School District in response to concerned parents. PIQE offers a 9-week program to help improve education through the joint collaboration of parents, students and teachers and emphasizes the role of parents as advocates for their children. In 2006 California State University (CSU) began working with PIQE to provide funding and support of outreach and training for low-income families.
In 1988 Mardirosian received recognition from Phi Delta Kappa for his service and leadership in educational reform and in 1998 CSU awarded him an honorary doctorate for his impact on the lives of parents and children of California. In 2010 Mardirosian received the "Remarkable Leader in Education" award from the University of San Diego.

Scope and Content

This collection contains material related to Vahac Mardirosian's pastoral work, his involvement with the 1968 East Los Angeles walk-out demonstration and the organizations he helped found and run, including the Hispanic Urban Center Board of Education and the Parent Institute for Quality Education. Materials include clippings, press releases, letters, statements, notes, sermons, evaluation reports, reading score percentiles and rankings, memoranda, fact sheets, and administrative documents, and cover a wide variety of educational topics including bilingual education, integration, teachers' attitudes towards Mexican American students, parental involvement, and reading achievement.

Organization and Arrangement

Arranged in the following series:
  1. Pastoral Work
  2. East Los Angeles High School Walk Out
  3. Hispanic Urban Center Board of Education
  4. Parent Institute for Quality Education (PIQE)
  5. Biographical Materials

Related Material

UCLA: Chicano Studies Research Center Library, Collection 56, The Desegregation Collection:  
  • Box 6C, Folder 183, Vahac Mardirosian. "Los Angeles City Schools Sixth Grade Fall 1971 Reading Scores." L.A Unified School District Summary Report #321.
  • Box 6D, Folder 212, "Los Angeles City Schools." Chart Prepared by Vahac Mardirosian. Also, "Letter to Mr. Vahac Mardirosian." 15 Apr. 1977.
Stanford University Special Collections, Collection M0673, Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund:  
  • RG 5, Box 1105, Folder 8, Mardirosian, Vahac Rev. Part of the Los Angeles alphabetical case files.

Subjects and Indexing Terms

Hispanic Urban Center Board of Education
Parent Institute for Quality Education
Vahac Mardirosian---Archives.

 

Pastoral Work 1964-2007

Scope and Contents note

Mostly VM's handwritten notes and sermons, as well as some typescript notes on a variety of materials including notebook paper, index cards and the back of ephemera. Most tend to be undated. Majority of sermons labeled with biblical references. Also, typescript draft of Mardirosian's "Our Cultural Heritage and the Gospel," and programs, letters, clippings and periodicals, minutes for Ad Hoc Advisory Committee on Theological Education for Hispanic-Americans, and report of Baptist Hispanic Causcus.
box 1, folder 1

Southern California Baptist Convention written materials 1964, 1968 April

Scope and Contents note

Brochure. Also, letter received and newsletter.
box 1, folder 2

Article by VM, "Testimonio Social" Ca. 1970

box 1, folder 3

Letters received by VM 1971

box 1, folder 4

50th Anniversary of Hispanic Baptists anniversary program 1973

box 1, folder 5

Avance Bautista Hispano clippings 1972, 1982-1988

Scope and Contents note

Clipping from 1972 "Avance" and 1980s copies of Hispanic Baptist newsletter "Avance".
box 1, folder 6

American Baptist Seminary of the West commencement program 1992

box 1, folder 7

National Hispanic Baptist Caucus summary report Ca. 1999

Scope and Contents note

Summary report of history, constitution, regulations, functions, organization chart and logo.
box 1, folder 8

Clippings and correspondence 1969-2007

Scope and Contents note

Includes letters received, programs, press releases and clippings.
box 1, folder 9

Clippings 1983, 1989

Scope and Contents note

Copy of February 1983 "Buenas Nuevas" monthly newsletter with profile on VM and 1989 "Education Week" excerpt by VM.
box 1, folder 10

Sermons 1955, 1966 and undated

Scope and Contents note

Handwritten and typescript drafts of VM's sermons. Handwritten notes. Mostly undated. Also, 1955 statistical report for Southern California Baptist Convention and 1966 program for Park Vista Baptist Church.
box 1, folder 11

Sermons 1963, Ca. 1992-1994 and undated

Scope and Contents note

Handwritten drafts of VM's sermons. Some undated.
box 1, folder 12

Sermons 1964, 1983, and undated

Scope and Contents note

Handwritten and typescript drafts of VM's sermons. Mostly undated. Also, agenda for 1964 Spanish American Baptist Seminary workshop "The Church in a Changing Community."
box 1, folder 13

Sermons Ca. 1980s and undated

Scope and Contents note

Handwritten and typescript drafts of VM's sermons. Mostly undated.
box 1, folder 14

Sermons Ca. 1983 and undated

Scope and Contents note

Handwritten and typescript drafts of VM's sermons. Mostly undated.
box 2, folder 1

Sermons Ca. 1980s-1990s and undated

Scope and Contents note

Handwritten drafts of VM's sermons. Mostly undated.
box 2, folder 2

Sermons Undated

Scope and Contents note

Handwritten and typescript drafts of VM's sermons. Mostly undated.
box 2, folder 3

Sermons Undated

Scope and Contents note

Handwritten drafts of VM's sermons. Mostly undated.
box 2, folder 4

Sermons Undated

Scope and Contents note

Handwritten drafts of VM's sermons. Mostly undated.
box 2, folder 5

Sermons Undated

Scope and Contents note

Handwritten drafts of VM's sermons. Mostly undated.
box 3, folder 1

Sermons Undated

Scope and Contents note

Handwritten and typescript drafts of VM's sermons. Mostly undated.
box 3, folder 2

Sermons and pamphlet Undated

Scope and Contents note

Handwritten and typescript drafts of VM's sermons. Mostly undated. Also copies of Southern California Baptist Convention pamphlet.
box 3, folder 3

Sermons Undated

Scope and Contents note

Handwritten drafts of VM's sermons. Mostly undated.
box 3, folder 4

Sermons Undated

Scope and Contents note

Handwritten drafts of VM's sermons. Organized in envelopes with his typescript notations of the sermon's title and/or biblical references. Some envelopes empty.
box 3, folder 5

Sermons Undated

Scope and Contents note

Handwritten drafts of VM's sermons. Organized in envelopes with his typescript notations of the sermon's title and/or biblical references. Some envelopes empty.
box 4, folder 1

Sermons Undated

Scope and Contents note

Handwritten drafts of VM's sermons. Organized in envelopes with his typescript notations of the sermon's title and/or biblical references. Some envelopes empty.
box 4, folder 2

Sermons Undated

Scope and Contents note

Handwritten drafts of VM's sermons. Organized in envelopes with his typescript notations of the sermon's title and/or biblical references. Some envelopes empty.
 

East Los Angeles High School Walk Out 1968-1972

Scope and Contents note

Clippings, statements made by VM, memoranda, letters, notes, leaflets, press releases, and drafts. In addition to the 1968 walk out, topics include the Mexican American Education Commission, death of Ruben Salazar, profile of Cesar Chavez, youth leadership and community development project, chapter VM wrote on "Planning for Effective Schools," 1969 sit-in demonstration, and actions taken by Board of Education.
box 4, folder 3

Inter-Religious Goals Committee memoranda and suggestions Ca. 1968 February

Scope and Contents note

Memoranda. Suggested elements for the Goals Council Report.
box 4, folder 4

Copies of flyer for meeting of educational issues committee. 1968, July 23

box 4, folder 5

Editorial responses Ca. 1968

Scope and Contents note

Letters written in response to newspaper editorials on East Los Angeles education issue.
box 4, folder 6

Publications and writings 1968

Scope and Contents note

Pamphlet, copy of "Con Safos" magazine, flyers and information sheets, contact list, clippings, meeting minutes, letters received, notes, and poems. Includes information on student demands, indicted instructors, a police riot at Roosevelt High School.
box 4, folder 7

Walk-out demonstration materials 1967-1969

Scope and Contents note

Press releases, clippings, map of march route from Placita Park to Board of Education, meeting program, fact sheet on Roosevelt High School, letter received, financial report, handwritten notes, statements made by VM to Board of Education.
box 4, folder 8

Reprinted profile on Chavez from the New Yorker by Peter Mathiessen. 1969 June

box 4, folder 9

Press and publications 1969

Scope and Contents note

Pamphlet, press release, newsletter clippings, flyers, Board of Education member list. Topics include the Mexican American Education Commission and reading scores and programs.
box 4, folder 10

Ruben Salazar clippings

box 4, folder 11

Writings by VM Ca. 1980s-2005

Scope and Contents note

Typescript chapter by VM on "Planning for Effective Schools" and a 2005 account by VM of a sit-in at the D.A.'s office.
box 4, folder 12

Clippings, notes, correspondence, and statements 1968 March 17-April 25

Scope and Contents note

Clippings and handwritten notes about walkout and its aftermath. Also, letters received, VM's statements to Board of Education, meeting minutes of Educational Issue Coordination Committee (EICC), and teacher proposals.
box 5, folder 1

Clippings, notes and minutes 1968 May 2 - July 26

Scope and Contents note

Clippings and handwritten notes re: Educational Issues Committee sponsoring a walk through, East L.A. selected for UAW community plan, opponents of the walk-out, integration in schools, indictment of participants. Also EICC minutes and VM statement.
box 5, folder 2

Clippings, writings and notes 1968 August 1 - November 22

Scope and Contents note

Clippings, minutes, draft and notes re: Board of Education & Urban Affairs meeting, student demands, indictment of participants, statements by VM, demonstration at Lincoln High School, bilingual education, sit-in at the School Board, interview with VM.
box 5, folder 3

Clippings, minutes and notes 1968 December 17 - 1969 May 9

Scope and Contents note

Meeting minutes of Educational Issue Coordination Committee (EICC), clippings and notes re: Spanish language programs, creation of citizen units, studies on education, ethnic makeup of Urban Affairs and Housing Committee members, demonstrations.
box 5, folder 4

Clippings, notes and statements 1969 June 1 - 1971 March

Scope and Contents note

Re: prejudice charges against Lincoln High instructor, School Board meetings and decisions, bilingual education, Mexican American Education Commission, reading programs, reform bill on teacher licensing, report card elimination proposal, integration.
box 5, folder 5

Press on teachers' attitudes towards Mexican Americans 1972

 

Hispanic Urban Center Board of Education 1970-1979

Scope and Contents note

Includes progress reports, program proposals, clippings, leaflets, letters, school visit commentary, fact sheets, L.A. school sample lists and reading scores, press release for VM's candidacy as school board member (District 5), photographs.
box 5, folder 6

Center open house materials, reports and proposals 1971-1977

Scope and Contents note

Brochure, reports and proposals, invitation to open house, program honoring VM, letters received, fact sheets. Includes 3-phase plan for the Center.
box 5, folder 7

Media materials and committee meeting documents 1970

Scope and Contents note

Pamphlets, press releases, clippings about education, Mexican American Education Commission task force memoranda, EICC meeting agenda, copy of "Regeneracion" newsletter, KABC broadcast transcript.
box 5, folder 8

Letters, clippings and address 1971

Scope and Contents note

Letters of interest, clippings about education, reading scores, address by VM "God's team: Clergy and Laity."
box 5, folder 9

Reading scores, update report, and in-service education proposal 1972

Scope and Contents note

Clippings about bilingual education and test scores, copies of reading scores, VM's update report on the Center, proposal for in service education program for teachers.
box 5, folder 10

Reading achievement materials and in-service education project summary 1973

Scope and Contents note

Reading scores, summary of community project for in-service cultural education, clippings, VM's reports on reading achievement, program for Baptist church on South McDonnell St.
box 5, folder 11

Awards, experimental course and board of education application 1974

Scope and Contents note

Materials related to VM's KNX Newsradio Man of the Year Award, outline of experimental course on minority student education, Mexican American Education Commission progress report, clippings, reading scores, VM's application to CA state board of education.
box 5, folder 12

Clippings, reading scores and site visit summaries 1975

Scope and Contents note

Clippings, letters received, reading evaluation contract with RAND, press release re: KNX Man of the Year Award, reading scores, draft letters from VM re: site visits
box 6, folder 1

Communications, reports and evaluations 1976

Scope and Contents note

Educational development committee communications include recommended sample of schools, district reading plan. RAND reports, reading scores, letters received, affirmative action advisory committee agenda, progress reports, sample school lists, flyer.
box 6, folder 2

Tom Bradley letters, reading plan materials and research 1977

Scope and Contents note

Letters received, clippings, brochure on course offerings, VM consultant contract, sample school list, reading scores, copy of "Teaching Reading and Language" by Wesley Becker, guidelines for district reading plan, analysis of Rand Reports.
box 6, folder 3

Assessment materials and resignation 1978

Scope and Contents note

Chicano Teacher Program materials, clippings, letters received, reading scores, assessment results, consultant contract. Topics include integration, Hispanic teachers, bilingual education. Also VM's resignation.
box 6, folder 4

School board campaign, folder 1 of 3 1979

Scope and Contents note

Letters re: VM's move to San Diego, materials regarding VM's candidacy for school board including typescript drafts, handwritten notes, clippings, petition for candidacy, press releases, funding raiser invitation
box 6, folder 5

School board campaign, folder 2 of 3 1979

Scope and Contents note

Letters, press releases and broadcasting announcements, clippings, sample ballot, statements, map for fund raising walk, steering committee contact lists, campaign update memorandum re: endorsements, district map, pamphlet
box 6, folder 6

School board campaign, folder 3 of 3 1979

Scope and Contents note

Clippings, letters and cards, campaign photographs of VM.
 

Parent Institute for Quality Education (PIQE) 1971-2004

Scope and Contents note

Includes clippings, notes, fact sheet, copies of newsletter "Informe," San Diego City Schools reading scores, Phi Delta Kappa Certificate of Recognition, materials for the C.I.E.N. organization, proposed goals, reports (evaluation report, superintendant report, assessments), bylaws, copies of Universidad Comienza Hoy newsletter, letters, contact lists, student/teacher/parent pact form, evaluation materials, memoranda, proposal to "World Vision Ministry," mission and philosophy, meeting minutes and treasury report.
box 6, folder 7

Research materials 1971-1989

Scope and Contents note

Clippings, newsletters, letters and reading achievement scores dating back to 1971. Most materials primarily from 1980s.
box 7, folder 1

Literature on reading achievement and learning 1972-1982

Scope and Contents note

Hispanic Urban Center 1972 evaluation report, ethnic survey, newsletters, clippings and writings, statements, fact sheet for Project Rainbow.
box 7, folder 2

San Diego reading scores 1979-1985

Scope and Contents note

Reading score percentile charts and ranking. Also clippings
box 7, folder 3

C.I.E.N. materials 1980-1981

Scope and Contents note

Brochures, ethnic surveys, newsletters, superintendent reports, handwritten notes, reading scores, San Diego Board of Education brochure, letters, statement and flyer.
box 7, folder 4

Reports and clippings 1980-2004

Scope and Contents note

Brochures, focus group report, details on drug workshop, agreement with San Diego City Schools, financial information, clippings, bylaws, letters, proposals, flyers and information sheets
box 7, folder 5

Evaluation reports 1983-1984, 2000-2001

Scope and Contents note

Organizational assessment, evaluation summary, and materials about the Mexican-American Advisory Committee.
box 7, folder 6

PIQE organizational materials 1987-1997

Scope and Contents note

Statements and reports, financial reports and budgets, clippings, meeting minutes, fact sheet, announcements, annual report and photograph.
box 7, folder 7

Administration binder 1987-1997

Scope and Contents note

Letters, proposals, funding information, meeting minutes, parents' contact information, charts, handwritten notes, form letters, evaluation reports and annual reports.
box 7, folder 8

Newspaper clippings 1987-2003

Scope and Contents note

Cover PIQE, Hispanic education, VM's involvement and Cesar Chavez.
box 7, folder 9

Informe newsletter 1988 January to 1993 July

Scope and Contents note

Copies of "Informe" newsletter published by PIQE.
box 8, folder 1

World Vision U.S. Ministry collaboration 1989-1996

Scope and Contents note

PIQE proposal to WVUS (World Vision U.S.), agreement, fact sheets, grant commitment letters and proposals, organizational chart, clippings, fund raising materials, recommendations and findings, coursework listing, memoranda.
box 8, folder 2

APUS (Association of Parents of University Students) bylaws and registration form 2002

box 8, folder 3

APUS (Association of Parents of University Students) organizational materials 2002-2003

Scope and Contents note

Stationery, copy of student-parent-teacher pact, member directory information, fact sheet, clipping, announcement, activity lists.
box 8, folder 4

Universidad newsletter 2001 March - 2003 June

Scope and Contents note

Copies of the "Universidad" Spanish language newsletter issued by APUS (Association of Parents of University Students).
box 8, folder 5

San Ysidro School District resolution of support 2003

 

Biographical materials Undated, 1980, 1998

Scope and Contents note

Includes resumes and honors for VM
box 8, folder 6

Resumes for VM Undated

box 8, folder 7

Honors 1988, 1998

Scope and Contents note

Phi Delta Kappa program and certificate for recognition of VM. Also, honorary degree of Doctor Humane Letters from trustees of California State University.