Fellows in Focus – February 2022
Fellows in Focus - February 2022
Dr. Sue Kenney
I was born and raised in Bergen County New Jersey, first in Tenafly, then in Park Ridge. I had taught at William Paterson University for about seven years before I began teaching at Immaculate Heart Academy, an all-girls private high school. I am in my 14th year at IHA and am grateful to teach juniors and seniors in the subjects of US History II Honors, Sociology, Global Issues, and Holocaust and Genocide Studies. It was the Holocaust and Genocide class that connected me with the Jewish Foundation for the Righteous, and this has made a profound impact on me as well as my students.
Until three years ago, I did not know of the JFR or their work. My students and I were given the opportunity to attend a JFR function, wherein Yolanda and Raymond Kunz, two truly caring human beings, were being honored for their dedication to supporting people who had helped save Jews during the Holocaust. It was a deeply moving experience, and I knew I wanted to learn more. This led to an Alfred B. Lerner Fellowship with the JFR, for which I am immensely thankful. The fellowship included intensive study at the JFR Summer Institute in 2021 and additional scholarly inquiry at the JFR Advanced Seminar in January of 2022. Despite the fact that both of these programs were conducted over Zoom due to the pandemic, there was a feeling of camaraderie in the space I shared with my JFR colleagues and with the world-class scholars who had dedicated their time to be with us. Dr. Steven Field discussed the practice of medicine in the Third Reich, and put into perspective ethical issues that are still with us today. This tied in beautifully with my study of Narrative Medicine at Columbia University, and revealed a true intersection between the humanities and science.
I consider myself a lifelong learner, and over the past 20 years I have been taking courses in addition to teaching full-time, earning various degrees and certifications. So I don’t speak lightly when I say my time studying in the JFR programs is unparalleled. I think the most compelling thing I learned was the very personal and intimate nature of the violence that seemingly ordinary people were able to perpetrate against their own neighbors. Not all of the killing occurred in concentration camps. The material is disturbing, yes. It is unsettling, for sure. But Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “People wish to be settled; only as far as they are unsettled is there any hope for them.” I believe this wholeheartedly. Studying the Holocaust can be difficult to navigate, but it helps us to understand our human and our historical inheritance. It forces us to ponder our own biases – our capacity for hating and marginalizing others, and for supporting oppression in various ways. Ultimately, the programs the JFR provides helps teachers and their students to understand that we can choose to struggle against evil, and to generate love and acceptance and commonality in the world. It’s a lesson worth learning.
Caroline DeWyngaert
Where do you teach and what subject do you teach?
I teach Grade 8 ELA at the Forrestdale School in Rumson, New Jersey
How did you get involved with the JFR?
I learned about the JFR through our school’s involvement with the JFR began through the CHHANGE (Center for Holocaust, Human Rights, and Genocide Education) program at Brookdale Community College in Lincroft, New Jersey. I then got involved in JFR programming.
What is your favorite memory from your participation in JFR programming?
My favorite memories are the relationships forged and the knowledge and insight shared among the participants and the speakers. The experience is unforgettable.
How do you feel the Lerner fellowship has impacted your life, both personally and professionally?
Personally and professionally, I feel more knowledgeable about all aspects of the Holocaust from the engagement with “How was it Possible? A Holocaust Reader” to the incredible speakers like Doris Bergen, Volker Berghahn, Peter Hayes, Alexandra Zapruder, etc. (I am sorry that I can’t name ALL the incredible speakers that the JFR has introduced me to). I was truly impacted by our lunch with Roman Kent and his children’s book “My Dog LaLa.” Though I know Roman has since passed, his perspective was so deeply inspirational. In addition, my friend, colleague, fellow JFR participant, and I were chosen to present our Holocaust unit at the National Convention of Teachers of English in Baltimore, MD in 2019.
Anything else you’d like to share with the JFR’s followers and supporters?
The program is tremendous and, Stanlee, you are inspirational. Thank you so much for this opportunity.
Ginni Stickney
Where do you teach and what subject do you teach?
I am at Eastern Guilford High School in Gibsonville, NC as a curriculum facilitator. I work with teachers across multiple disciplines. Prior to this position, I taught social studies at the middle school and high school level, was an instructional coach and school administrator, as well as a library media specialist.
How did you get involved with the JFR?
While living in Kansas City, MO, I was part of the teachers cadre for the Midwest center for Holocaust Education. I was lucky enough to be nominated for the JFR summer institute.
What drew you to the organization and its programming?
The Holocaust and the importance of teaching this historical event from a personal perspective has always been important to me. JFR enhanced some of the experiences and learning expeditions I have had regarding the Holocaust. Gaining additional perspectives and knowledge from the speakers, authors, and survivors helped me be a better teacher of history.
What was the most compelling thing you learned as an Alfred Lerner Fellow?
The most compelling presentation was from Edward Westermann. I have always been intrigued by the book Ordinary Men and he added new knowledge to how ordinary citizens in Germany could have participated in the mass destruction of the Jewish people.
What is your favorite memory from your participation in JFR programming?
My favorite memory is by far the people. When you embark on a journey like this with people, you bond over that experience. Stanlee was an incredible host and provided an experience that allowed me to meet lifelong friends.
How do you feel the Lerner fellowship has impacted your life, both personally and professionally?
This experience added so much information to my knowledge base regarding the Holocaust. Professionally it made me a better instructor. Personally, it awarded me a learning opportunity that helped me continue learning about a topic that has become a personal passion to explore.
Hashim Davis
Where do you teach and what do you teach?
I teach at Albemarle High school, a public high school in Albemarle County, Charlottesville, Virginia. The school is literally 10 minutes from the Grounds of the University of Virginia. I teach US/Virginia History; African American History; and Holocaust and genocide.
How did you get involved with the JFR?
One of my friends that I met during my initial meeting as a Teacher Fellow with the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum mentioned the JFR and suggested that I apply to their Alfred Lerner program.
What drew you to the organization and its programming?
Since I became a Fellow with the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum-(USHMM)-in 2015, I have been applying to a variety of fellowships in order to further my knowledge in Holocaust studies. What drew me to the JFR was its emphasis on the academic side of studying the Holocaust; the prospect working alongside some of the most learned scholars in the field was what drew me to the organization.
What was the most compelling thing you learned as an Alfred Lerner Fellow?
Each of the presenters were experts in the field. From Professor Peter Hayes lecture on the rise of Nazi power to Alexandra Zapruder’s lecture from her book, “Salvaged Pages;” Professor Robert Jan van Pelt’s topic on the killing methods to Professor Paul Salmon’s topic on using artifacts to teach the Holocaust; each of these experts provided a robust and insightful presentation that allowed me to build upon my knowledge of the Holocaust. I even purchased several of their books, including Edward Westermann’s “Drunk on Genocide: Alcohol and Mass Murder in Nazi Germany.”
How do you feel the Lerner fellowship has impacted your life, both personally and professionally?
Becoming a Lerner Fellow allowed me to build upon my knowledge as a Holocaust educator. Professionally, my peers were not certain as to what the fellowship was all about until I was interviewed by the local news outlet who wanted to do a story about my experience as an Alfred Lerner Fellow. From that experience, I had been asked to speak about the Holocaust as a guest lecturer at one of the local universities; signed up for a survivor to speak with my African American History class; and applying for and receiving a grant to be used to purchase class copies for Art Spiegleman’s ‘Maus.’ Personally, I am an even better educator practitioner because of the pedagogical framing of the JFR’s programming. I am looking forward to traveling to Europe as an Advanced Fellow with the JFR in the immediate future.
