Pass It On


The challenge of passing on strong ethnic ties to the next generation is one that all cultures deal with in the United States.  By examining the U.S. census data, one can track a real trend indicating that many ethnic populations are losing their knowledge of, and interest in, their ancestry -- history, culture and language.  It is clear that a combination of complex factors – some community related, some environmental - are to blame.

For example, the further one gets away from the first immigrants, the weaker the ethnic tie becomes unless the family makes ethnicity an integral part of daily life and repeatedly exposes and reinforces young people to direct ethnic experiences.  There are also issues like: marriage to people outside of the same ethnic group, an inability to speak the language, a lack of community infrastructure to rely on – such as churches or schools – and the list goes on…

Lauer Learning presents the ”Pass It On” project as a program of preservation as well as a plan for change.   

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The challenge of passing on strong ethnic ties to the next generation is one that all cultures deal with in the United States.  By examining the U.S. census data, one can track a real trend indicating that many ethnic populations are losing their knowledge of, and interest in, their ancestry -- history, culture and language.  It is clear that a combination of complex factors – some community related, some environmental - are to blame.

For example, the further one gets away from the first immigrants, the weaker the ethnic tie becomes unless the family makes ethnicity an integral part of daily life and repeatedly exposes and reinforces young people to direct ethnic experiences.  There are also issues like: marriage to people outside of the same ethnic group, an inability to speak the language, a lack of community infrastructure to rely on – such as churches or schools – and the list goes on…

Lauer Learning presents the ”Pass It On” project as a program of preservation as well as a plan for change. 

It identifies new ways to reach the youth and help families strengthen ties to their roots by finding ways to connect and re-connect 2nd and 3rd generation Americans to their ethnic backgrounds. We do this with a variety of tools and new approaches that expose, educate and engage ‘at risk’ members of ethnic communities nationwide and help them gradually develop more and more interest in their ancestry.

As part of “Pass It On,” Lauer Learning is developing a number of new educational materials that specifically target the next generation of Hungarian Americans (our first target group).  Through the use of multimedia tools and the creation of an online community site, TheGulyasPot.com, we hope to move young Hungarian Americans down a continuum and reverse this trend.

If you are interested in reading more about the “Pass It On” initiative, please download the white paper on this page.  Also, visit our blog and post feedback in the “Pass It On” section.  This is a work in progress and one that will benefit by people and ethnic communities working together to share ideas and best practices.

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Download White Paper(PDF, 242kb)