And, with the exception of Charlotte Starks, who served as first vice president, the same officers who served the past two years were chosen.

Re-elected were President Jeanetta Williams, First Vice President Phillip Lee, Treasurer Vanesa Maddocks and Secretary Curly Jones.

Allen Holmes joined the group of officers as second vice president.

Williams, who has served as NAACP president since 1992, said the group will work this year to represent other ethnic communities. Though the NAACP in the past focused on civil rights for blacks, it is a group that has grown to include the nation's various ethnic communities, she said.

"We want to make sure we're very inclusive," she said.

This year, the group will encourage school districts to hire more minority teachers, and try to implement a plan to reduce discrimination in schools and eliminate predatory lending practices, she said.

The organization also is concerned with financial lending, bringing more economic development to minority communities and supporting financial development in disadvantaged areas, Williams said.

The Utah branch has more than 500 members, she said, and the group meets monthly at the Law and Justice Center, 645 S. 200 East, on the first Monday of each month at 6 p.m.

For more information, call 250-5088.