SIGNATURE PROGRAMS
Warren Fellowship for Future Teachers
Each year, Holocaust Museum Houston brings future educators, college
faculty and activists from across the United States to Houston to learn
together from scholars representing Holocaust institutions around the
world. In May 2015, 27 Fellows, the largest group to date, met for six days
of learning, interacted with Holocaust survivors and used the Museum
as a space to learn from and explore. Participants were selected in a
rigorous application process, representing 18 colleges and universities.
Spector/Warren Fellowship for Future Teachers
During January 2015, 18 undergraduate and graduate Syracuse University
students from seven states traveled to Houston to participate in a one-
of-a-kind program that helps future educators learn how to teach their
students about one of history’s darkest times, the Holocaust, and about
its relevance to today’s world. The nationally acclaimed fellowship provides
intensive training and opportunities to hear from international experts on
World War II and Holocaust history, as well as from Houston-area survivors
of the Nazi atrocities of the Holocaust. One of the Fellows wrote,
“So much happened to me in Houston. I heard, read, saw, learned,
experienced, and realized so much. Survivors of the Holocaust
will often say, “I died there.” They also talk about having two
different lives: life before the Holocaust and life after. About my
time in Houston, though, I could say I was born there. Life seemed
to become renewed during that time. My life will now exist in two
parts: life before the Spector/Warren Fellowship, and life after.”
– A Spector/Warren Fellow
The Spector/Warren Fellowship for Future Teachers is sponsored by
Helen and Andrew Spector and the Spector Family Foundation, in honor
of Survivor Naomi Warren.
Law Enforcement and Society
Working with the Anti-Defamation League and the Houston Police
Department, the Museum hosted four Law Enforcement and Society
training sessions for area law enforcement personnel. The program
examines the role of law enforcement during the years of the Holocaust
and pivotal roles in society today. This year, the program was visited by
Washington, DC, colleagues from the United States Holocaust Memorial
Museum and the Anti-Defamation League.
Max M. Kaplan Summer Institute
The Max M. Kaplan Summer Institute was a success in 2015, including
our inaugural “Holocaust Education 101” session, held with the support of
the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum on the first day of the Max
M. Kaplan Summer Institute. The intent of this additional programming,
extending the typical four-day institute, was to introduce those new to
Holocaust education to the framework for teaching the subject. Thirty-
three educators participated this year. The Gerald S. Kaplan Endowment
Lecture was presented by Professor Peter Hayes, the Theodore Zev
Weiss Holocaust Educational Foundation Professor at Northwestern
University, who specializes in the history of Germany in the 20th century
and particularly in the Nazi period. His lecture countered common myths
and misconceptions about the Holocaust.
i-Pad Digital Curriculum Trunk Program
The Museum’s trademark curriculum trunk program continued to flourish
this fiscal year. Each trunk contains a class set of iPad minis, and a trunk
is available for a teacher’s use for 30 days. Each digital device has an
individual cover and is pre-loaded with an i-Book written by the Museum’s
education staff, “Exploring the Holocaust & Genocide,” which is an overview
of Holocaust and genocide history, with connections to literature and art.
There are also links to appropriate Web sites.
GRATITUDE REPORT 2015 31
“This experience had a
profound effect on every part
of me. I expected to come
out a better teacher of the
Holocaust, but not to come out
a different person. The passion
everyone has for the work they
do was truly inspiring. I want
to get involved in any way that
I can and continue my studies
because I know the knowledge
I have is only the tip of the
iceberg.”
-- Max M. Kaplan Summer Institute
participant.
Children of all ages participated in the Museum Experience Day, one
of the busiest days of the year for the Museum.
Survivor Pauline Rubin worked with teachers attending the Max M.
Kaplan Summer Institute during 2015.