From Deseret News archives:
Utahns determined to teach about Holocaust
Litvack says some students not aware that it occurred
She hopes her students get the message when she tells them, "You have to learn acceptance and tolerance. ..."
"It doesn't matter what color people are or what religion they are," Drussel said. "We are just people."
Today marks national Holocaust Remembrance Day. Utah's official remembrance ceremony will be held on Friday.
On Monday, about 50 Utah Armenians protested outside the federal building in Salt Lake City seeking recognition of another genocide. Monday was the 90th anniversary of the start of an Ottoman Empire genocide that killed more than a million people. It has yet to be acknowledged as a genocide by the either the United States or Turkey.
"It definitely hurts to be forgotten," said Yelena Ayrapetova of Salt Lake.
Rep. David Litvack, D-Salt Lake, said there are students in Utah's schools who aren't aware of the Holocaust or other genocides.
"It is definitely a problem, in my perspective, that we have a population growing up that doesn't know about the Holocaust," Litvack said. "It's important that we are aware, that we are raising educated citizens who are aware of what has happened."
While Utah has no explicit requirement to raise awareness of the Holocaust or other genocides, the state Office of Education encourages teachers to incorporate the lessons learned from the Nazi systematic extermination of 6 million Jews, along with other targeted groups.
Drussel is one of a handful of teachers nationwide finishing up a yearlong educator fellowship with the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum. As part of that fellowship, she recently held a training for about 55 teachers.
Peter Fredlake, coordinator of the Memorial Museum's teacher fellowship program, said up to 15 teachers a year are selected to participate in the fellowship. So far, 210 teachers have participated since its inception, including three from Utah.
"People who apply for this program are the cream of the crop," Fredlake said. "They are dedicated and know what it means to work hard. They're not going to stop teaching at the end of the year."
Fredlake said Utah is one of 24 states that don't explicitly mention Holocaust awareness as part of the curriculum. However, he said it is implicit in other areas, such as a mention of national socialists. Only seven states require Holocaust awareness training, he said.
It's critical for any education program to include context, Fredlake said.
"One of the most common mistakes is not having a clear rationale for why you're teaching it," Fredlake said. "In a U.S. government class, part of the rationale could be, 'I want students to understand that democracy is a fragile thing.'"
