Schoolchildren across the country required to collect information from states will hit a colorful jackpot if they're tabbed to do a report about Utah: The Utah Office of Tourism has developed a package of glossy notecards packed with photos and information about the Beehive State.
Jason Perry, executive director of the Governor's Office of Economic Development, told the GOED board this week that the "infocards" replace materials produced in 1980 that are sent in response to about 2,000 requests annually from students nationwide. Perry recalled that his fourth-grade assignment involved getting information about Massachusetts.
Among the tidbits included on the Utah cards is that the official state star is Dubhe, part of the Big Dipper, although one board member jokingly guessed the Osmonds.
"So stuff like that you'd want to put in your report, it's all on these cards," Perry said. "We'll be sending all this information out to those kids. We're sending it out to all sorts of other people. It's just another nice thing to promote the state, in a very nice package."
Each of the eight cards in the packet features the "Life Elevated" brand and artwork used on the state's new highway welcome signs and other
promotional materials. The reverse sides have photos and information about state facts, Utah explorers and pioneers, early inhabitants, Utah's prehistory, ecology, people and the economy and recreation. One includes maps showing Utah's location in the U.S. and Intermountain West, plus a state map.
Each card refers readers to a Web site with more information about the individual topics.
The cards come in a cardboard envelope that folds out to reveal a photo of Delicate Arch and indicates that more "cool photos" of Utah are available at travel.utah.gov/photos
E-mail: bwallace@desnews.com