Santa Clara University teamed up with Heyday publishing company in the Spring of 2000 to launch the California Legacy Project (CLP) whose goal is to raise public awareness and appreciation for California’s cultural legacy and encourages faculty and students in their creative and scholarly interest in Californian culture. More importantly for this blog post is the addition to the book series, which is the new public radio programs that hope to establish a more vibrant and interactive identity within the online community. CLP aims to fulfill the mission through achieving specific strategic goals. They want to: 1. Demonstrate the contemporary relevance of California’s multicultural and historical legacy, 2. Explore the relationship between Californian tradition and Californian innovation, 3. Provide a public forum for shared discussions between faculty and students about California-related material, 4. Promote attention to California’s history in the Santa Clara University community and 5. Foster student/faculty collaboration on California-related research projects. CLP wants to gain recognition within the Santa Clara community through their book series, site and radio scripts.

One of the radio scripts I read and listened to was about Gellet Burgess (1866-1951) an engineering professor from MIT. Gellet came to California in 1887 and rather being known for his engineering feats, his achievements and recognition came through his unique poetry and quirky characters like the the “Goops.” CLP provides 3 scripts for Gellet focused on three of his classic poems that he contributed to the California community and later to the rest of the nation.

Another script was focused on Mary Bowden Carroll who came to San Jose from New York in 1892.Ten years in Paradise offers readers a sunny perspective on the Santa Clara Valley. The novel includes Carroll’s observations of the good relations between rival colleges: Santa Clara College and the University of the Pacific. Carroll’s novel provides insight and guidance to understanding business and social life in the Santa Clara Valley.

Both scripts are two examples of the importance that CLP wants to place on the individuals who made important contributions to California’s history. It seemed that most of these radio podcasts focus on literary contributions, but perhaps their next expansion will be recollections of important events that took place in the late 19th and early 20th century California.