Briefly, one important thing to note now is that, though I have not lost
interest in the project, and want to proceed as soon as possible, I will not
have a lot of time in the near future to launch the first phase, which will
be about the people who have volunteered to define the nature and scope of
the project thinking how to begin their efforts. But I think it is just as
well that we wait to really get started for a while - probably not more than
a couple of weeks - in order to recruit several more people to our ranks.
Initially, I suggested that we think about making the project international
in scope, since similar issues exist in all parts of the world with respect
to how the history of our various nations is taught. However, there were
no responses from anyone outside North America. Right now, I have on the
mailing list I set up to provide communications for the working group, a
total of eleven people in the United States, four in Canada, and one in
Mexico - with two more "maybes" in Canada. My initial aim is to recruit
enough additional people in Canada so that there is a one-to-one balance
between the numbers in Canada and the U.S. in this working group, so that
we are reasonably well assured that the issues of people living in both
countries are dealt with. I invite anyone else in Mexico - or elsewhere
in Central or South American, for that matter - to join the working group,
but will not attempt to achieve any sort of parity in that/those case(s).
(However, once the North American project is successfully launched, I
will again invite those in other parts of the world, particularly in New
Zealand/Aotearoa and Australia, where I know we have some subscribers to
launch parallel projects, and will do what I can to help coordinate any
efforts that people in those places might care to initiate.)
So I would like to request anyone who has a real interest in this project
and who would like to participate actively in the initial planning discus-
sions who lives in Canada (or who knows of someone in Canada who might like
to join) to contact me as soon as possible. I hope we in the working group
can get started on our introductions to one another sometime this month,
and that we will be able to make a report back to NAT-EDU within the next
several months concerning the scope and approach of the plan we recommend.
At that point, there will be a new call for participation in the next phase
of planning.
I apologize that it is taking some time to get this effort "off the ground."
However, I am very busy handling the other NativeNet mailing lists also,
and in doing other things necessary in my own life. I'll look forward to
our being able to make a report back to NAT-EDU in late winter or early
spring. (I will send a message to everyone on the initial planning group
mailing list via that list just to let you know that you're on the list.
If you think you signed up to be on the planning group and don't receive
such a message, please contact me.)
Gary
--
Gary S. Trujillo gst@gnosys.svle.ma.us
Somerville, Massachusetts {bu.edu,spdcc,cdp}!gnosys!gst