Holocaust Resouce Center reaches a growing and diverse audience

Stockton University Sara and Sam Schoffer Holocaust Resource Center.

GALLOWAY TOWNSHIP – The Sara and Sam Schoffer Holocaust Resource Center at Stockton University offered the most programs in 2020-2021 among the 31 Holocaust Centers in New Jersey according to the New Jersey Commission on Holocaust Education’s year-end report to Gov. Phil Murphy.

The 91 programs offered through the Stockton University Holocaust education center reached almost 10,000 students, educators and members of the community.

“This was an especially challenging year, but we very successfully converted to virtual programs, seminars and lectures,” said Holocaust Center Director Gail Rosenthal. “Our virtual offerings also allowed us to reach new participants who would not have been able to travel to the center.”

The Holocaust Center offers a variety of programs for diverse audiences. Through Stockton’s Dual High School Credit Program in Holocaust and Genocide Studies, a Stockton undergraduate class is taught in 32 area high schools, offering students both high school and college credits, and using the lessons of the Holocaust to teach the next generation.

The 2021 summer workshop for teachers, held in partnership with Yad Vashem in Israel, attracted educators not only from New Jersey and Israel, but also from Canada, India, South Africa and Mexico.

Stockton’s collection of 78 memoirs by area Holocaust survivors in the “Writing as Witness” program were shared with area schools. The center staff also stayed in touch with local Holocaust survivors by phone and delivered Jewish holiday meals.

A variety of public programs allowed community members to hear first-hand from Holocaust survivors and educators. The center’s website offers resources for educators, students, and the public.

An ongoing special project under development features the stories of over 1,300 Holocaust survivors who came to South Jersey.  The first planned traveling exhibition,  “What Language Do Chickens Speak?” will focus on survivors who developed more than 200 poultry farms.