What popular term is used in Mexico and Central America to refer to the U.S.? What is the correct name for Spanish-speaking residents of the U.S.? Through what treaty did the U.S. acquire about half of the Mexican Republic?

 

Know Your Heritage: Hispanic College Quiz

University of Houston-Victoria Hispanic students who answered El Norte, Hispanic or Latino, and the 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo may want to consider becoming a member of a team representing the university on a nationally televised quiz show.

 

Vic Padelford, UHV director of international programs and special projects, found out last week that UHV was selected to compete against seven other universities on the “Know Your Heritage: Hispanic College Quiz” TV show. He is recruiting students to be on the team.

 

Four UHV students, an alternate and their coach, either Padelford or UHV Student Services Manager Minnie Urbano, will travel April 4-6 to Chicago to tape all four episodes of the show. The series will air nationally on NBC affiliates between Sept. 15 and Oct. 15, which is Hispanic Heritage Month.

 

“It will be a good opportunity for our students to gain pride in their Hispanic heritage and understand that it is an important part of U.S. history,” Padelford said.

 

The show will feature Hispanic college students answering a series of multiple-choice questions. The questions will be taken from the book “A History of Latinos in America – Harvest of Empire” by Juan Gonzalez. Chicago’s Central City Productions, which is producing the show, will pay for airline tickets, hotel accommodations, ground transportation, six copies of the book, a study guide and other expenses for all the teams.

 

“It is part of our mission to become a Hispanic-serving institution and having a team on the show will give us national exposure,” UHV Provost Suzanne LaBrecque said. “I know our students will represent the university well, and I wish them the best of luck.”

 

Other universities that have confirmed participation in the competition are:

• East Los Angeles College, Monterey Park, Calif.
• New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, N.M.
• Our Lady of the Lake University, San Antonio
• St. Peter’s College, Jersey City, N.J.
• San Diego State University, San Diego
• Whittier College, Whittier, Calif.

The purpose of the quiz show is to generate excitement about Hispanic history by featuring Latino students from across the country showcasing their knowledge of their heritage, producer Omar McClinton said. Scholarship money will be awarded to the winning university.

 

Central City Productions also produced “Know Your Heritage: Black College Quiz,” which aired in January and February.

 

“This understanding of each other’s heritage is just another way to bring us together in a world that is trying so desperately to tear us apart,” he said.

 

The “Hispanic College Quiz” series will be taped inside the Harold Washington Cultural Center in Chicago. Teams will get points for answering questions correctly, and the questions will become harder each round. Teams will be eliminated as the competition advances, and the series will end with semifinal and championship rounds. The show will be hosted by Zoraida Sambolin, co-anchor of the weekday edition of “NBC5 News Today” in Chicago.

 

Juan Diego Martinez, a UHV psychology and communications major, was selected for the UHV team and is looking forward to learning more about his heritage.

 

“I think it’s an exciting opportunity because my generation is becoming less aware of Hispanic history,” he said. “This is going to be beneficial for me in the future.”

 

For more information about joining the UHV team, contact Padelford at (361) 570-4186 or padelfordv@uhv.edu.