Tempe History Museum hosts second lunch talk since the pandemic

The Tempe History Museum hosted their monthly History Society Lunch Talk, with today’s topic being “The Mexican Women of the Tempe Territorial Normal School: A Look at the Cultural and Educational Foundation of Tempe, 1885-1936,” giving insight to Mexican-American success in Tempe.

This is the second lunch talk that the museum has hosted since the pandemic forced closures. The lecture-based events bring in a new guest every month that gives a passionate talk about the city’s rich history.

At the event, Dr. Christine Marin, this month’s guest speaker, spoke about the prejudice towards the Mexican-American population in Tempe.

“There’s a Mexican problem,” said Marin, imitating the complaints coming from Tempe residents in the early 20th century.

With her words, Marin painted a picture of the struggles Mexican residents had to go through. One example she brought up was the 8th Street School.

The 8th Street School was the only elementary school in Tempe, until the 10th Street School was built. When the new school was built, white families sent their children to 10th Street, and 8th Street School was known as the school for Mexican children. Teachers at the 8th Street School were unable to teach their students because they couldn’t speak Spanish, until one woman from Maine arrived in the west.

Gracia Fernandez, a University of Maine graduate came to Arizona looking for a job to teach English, and was hired at the Tule School to teach Mexican children English. Later, she was hired at the Tempe Normal School to be a Professor of Spanish.

Marin believes that Fernandez’s efforts to teach the Spanish language made it “legitimate, admirable, more important than you’d ever think,” in a time when fights for “English only” classrooms were happening.

Debbie Lolling, one of the attendees, recalls being in school in the midst of the Spanish-language integration.

“I remember going to school with Mexican kids, and they weren’t allowed to speak Spanish in class, and now I think everyone would love to learn the language,” said Lolling.

“More and more students in the Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College are asking for more ways to learn Spanish because there is still that need for teachers to be able to help students who do not know English,” she said.

Ashley Rodriguez, a Mexican-American student at the Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College, says Marin’s speech “opened her eyes” to the history behind the profession of teaching, specifically the teaching of the Spanish language to future teachers.

“I wasn’t aware of the history behind the profession here, but hearing about it made me thankful that I grew up learning Spanish. Knowing the language can bring communities together,” she said.

Marin ended her speech the same way she started it, reciting “Gracia Lilliana Fernandez,” emphasizing the impact Fernandez had on the Spanish language in Tempe.

Dr. Marin is well-known in Tempe for her contributions to Mexican-American culture and pride in the city. She taught courses on the history of Mexican Americans for the History Department and the School of Transborder Studies at Arizona State University’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and along the way has also received awards such as the Sharlot Hall award, and the Community Award from the National Association for Chicana and Chicano Studies, according the Tempe History Society website.

“All she needs is a Nobel Prize,” said Vic Linoff, the event coordinator.

The next lunch talk will be on Jan. 12, with special guest David Pearson.