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10 | SEPTEMBER 26 • 2019

1942 - 2019

Covering and Connecting
Jewish Detroit Every Week
jn

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Executive Editor/Publisher
ahorwitz@renmedia.us

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How to reach us see page 14

O

ur task is daunting:
Teach the lessons of
the Holocaust, inspire
compassion for the “other”
and empower students to go
out into the
world and take
positive action.
We need schools
to teach about
the Holocaust
not because it is
mandated by the
state (which it
is), but because we must create
active and empathic citizens who
participate in our democracy
and fight for what they believe
is right.
The education department of
the Holocaust Memorial Center,
through the generosity of the
Ravitz Foundation, reaches out
to schools throughout Michigan
to provide training workshops
to teach the Holocaust accu-
rately and with best pedagogic
practices. HMC education spe-

cialists travel as far as the Upper
Peninsula and as close as down
the street to work with teachers
from many disciplines — social
studies, English language arts,
visual arts and special needs pro-
fessionals.
The number 6 million, while
tragic, is incomprehensible and
impersonal; we teach that 6 mil-
lion times, one person was mur-
dered. That person had a name,
a family, a life before the Shoah
and, for the very few, a life after.
By introducing students to real
people, through survivor video
testimony, poetry and art created
by the victims, and other first-
hand sources, students can con-
nect with people who lived long
ago in far-away places, but who
were still just like them.
Public Act 170, the Michigan
Law requiring genocide educa-
tion, including the Holocaust
and Armenian genocides, went
into effect in 2016. Since then,
we have trained 657 teachers

from 356 schools, located in 67
out of Michigan’
s 83 counties.
By traveling to the schools, we
create ongoing relationships with
the teachers. It is these personal
connections that keep teachers
coming back for more in-depth
explorations of specific content
areas and teaching strategies.
Workshop participants have
praised the training for pro-
viding strong connections that
make the Holocaust relevant
to students, practical teaching
strategies for such difficult
subject matter and valuable
resource materials — all done in
a professional and high caliber of
instruction.
“I came in with a limited
knowledge of and a general fear
of teaching about the Holocaust.
I feel better and more confi-
dent,” noted a middle school
social studies and English lan-
guage arts teacher from Sault
Ste. Marie Public Schools.
Especially noteworthy was

this comment from a high
school social studies teacher
from the Detroit Public Schools
Community District, who said
of the training: “Very powerful
as usual and very relevant today
with the increase of hate-filled
events!”
This teacher captured the
essence of what we strive for at
the Holocaust Memorial Center
— to help all individuals make
personal connections to the
affairs of a complex world.
As we look forward to another
school year, we remain dedicated
to training teachers throughout
the state. Further, we invite all
parents and families to visit the
Holocaust Memorial Center
in Farmington Hills to expand
their understanding of the
Holocaust and its application
to personal and social issues of
today.

Ruth Bergman is the director of educa-

tion at the Holocaust Memorial Center.

essay
Holocaust Education Training

Program forges deep connections with Michigan teachers.

Ruth
Bergman