The role of women in the history of the American West will be the subject of a University Forum lecture set for March 30.

Elizabeth Jameson, professor and Imperial Oil and Lincoln McKay chair in American Studies at the University of Calgary in Canada, will discuss "Women's Lives in Western History: Tanners, Gardeners, Churners, Homesteaders" in her lecture at 7:30 p.m. in the auditorium of the Marjorie Barrick Museum of Natural History on the UNLV campus.

In her talk, Jameson will re-examine the history of the American West from the perspective of women and point out the integral roles they played in the region's development. Up until recently, she notes, the prevailing understanding of the history of the western U.S. was based on the perspective of historical progress through the work of men.

"We have been taught that western expansion progressed through a line of frontiers occupied by traders, ranchers, miners, and farmers," she says. "I seek to expand the discussion by adding the perspective of women and describing their contributions through their respective labors."

An international scholar, Jameson has authored several books and articles and is considered the founder of the field of western women's history.

Jameson's lecture is the inaugural event of the recently established Women's Research Institute of Nevada, which seeks to improve the lives of all Nevadans through the stimulation, coordination, and communication of research on women and gender by university faculty.

The event is cosponsored by the Nevada Humanities Committee, UNLV's College of Liberal Arts, and the women's studies program. The series is underwritten by the UNLV Foundation.

For more information, call 895-3401.