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ISRAELI EDUCATORS ASSIST CLASS STUDY OF THE HOLOCAUST
Evonne Coutros
The Record (Bergen County, NJ)
December 28, 2010 Tuesday
AE Edition
NEW MILFORD - A recent visit to the high school by a group of Israeli
educators has brought a view of the modern Middle East to a roomful
of students studying the Holocaust and genocide.
The educators, from the city of Nahariya in Israel, have partnered
with the school through the UJA Federation of Northern New Jersey's
Partnership 2000 program. The New Milford High School curriculum
includes a model course taught by Colleen Tambuscio that covers the
Holocaust, genocide and human behavior.
"Our program in New Milford teaches the warning signs of genocide,"
Tambuscio said. "The lesson is to teach students to be on guard for
genocide today."
Rabbi Yehuda Rosenberg, principal of the Ulpana School -- a religious
school for girls in the Nahariya district -- offered a presentation
about Israel as a democracy to some of the 45 students in the course.
The son of a Holocaust survivor, Rosenberg told the students that
for modern Israel, the "big issues" are "peace, security, economics."
Rosenberg outlined the role of the legislative body, or Knesset, to
the students, offering them a glimpse of the 120-member parliament and
elections that involve 15 political parties rather than a two-party
system.
Joining Rosenberg on the trip to New Milford -- the only stop at
a U.S. public school -- was co-worker Mercedes Hadad, a teacher at
Ulpana, and Rivka Ben Ami, principal of Remez Elementary School. The
delegation also included Avi Menashes, head of Shechakim Junior and
Senior High School, and Avi Berger, principal of Even Shoham Dati
Elementary School.
Tambuscio is no stranger to Nahariya, the schools or the school
district. She visited the city two months ago through the UJA
Federation of Northern New Jersey's Partnership 2000 program.
The course at New Milford covers the Armenian genocide, the Aramaean
persecution during the Armenian genocide, the Holocaust, and human
behavior and genocide in Cambodia, Rwanda and Darfur.
Each year Tambuscio travels with students to Europe as part of a
Holocaust study tour. This school year's trip in April will visit
Germany, the Czech Republic and Poland, where the students will meet
Holocaust survivors; when they return to the U.S., they will create
outreach programs. In May, a group of students from Nahariya will
visit New Milford.
"The students come back with a sense of responsibility for telling
the stories," said New Milford Superintendent Michael Polizzi. "They
understand that every year there are fewer and fewer survivors,
and they pick up on that ... that resonates with them."
The course is a model program at the high school.
Rosenberg's presentation offered students an idea of how their
counterpart students dress, study and test for college. His insight
and information will tie into a global leadership program to be
introduced into the New Milford curriculum, Polizzi said.
Meredith McCann, a senior who traveled to Europe with Tambuscio last
year, called Rosenberg's talk invaluable.
"Having him speak and having them here is something you really can't
get anywhere else," said McCann, 17. "A lot of questions about Israel
have been cleared up. He's opening our eyes so much to information
that we never really knew before. The questions [about Israel and
the Holocaust] aren't really coming to him from us yet because we're
absorbing so much of what he said today. We've studied the warning
signs to genocide and the Armenian genocide and are now in the
beginning of studying the Holocaust, so the timing [of their visit]
is perfect."
Technology such as Skype and social networking sites are an advantage
now that the students have met all the educators, McCann said.
"The more connections we make, the more connections we'll be able
to have when we want to ask questions," McCann said. "We could
have conversations with Mercedes Hadad or even her students. We'll
definitely make it work."
New Milford senior Ninva Bekdas, 17, is Aramaean and was interested in
Rosenberg's presentation of Israel as a culture that embraces family
and is concerned about keeping the state safe.
"Israel is their home, and they want to protect their home," she said.
"I'm very happy to see that they worked to get their own country. They
went through the Holocaust to get their own country. I'm hoping maybe
sometime we [Aramaeans] find our own country or nation so we can all
be united as one rather than be scattered around the world. That we
can do that, too."
Brenton Prisendorf, 16, was unaware of Israel's required military
service.
"I didn't think it was peaceful there at all when I see all the
fighting on the news," said the high school junior. "He changed my
mind with what he was saying. I was interested about what they give
to their citizens ... that they have to serve in the army and give
back to their country. Israel is very orderly, very structured."
Rosenberg hopes he left the students enlightened about what lies
inside the boundaries of Israel -- declared a state in 1948.
"I wanted them to hear about Israel as it is," Rosenberg said. "At
the end of the day I want them to come and visit Israel."
From: A. Papazian
Evonne Coutros
The Record (Bergen County, NJ)
December 28, 2010 Tuesday
AE Edition
NEW MILFORD - A recent visit to the high school by a group of Israeli
educators has brought a view of the modern Middle East to a roomful
of students studying the Holocaust and genocide.
The educators, from the city of Nahariya in Israel, have partnered
with the school through the UJA Federation of Northern New Jersey's
Partnership 2000 program. The New Milford High School curriculum
includes a model course taught by Colleen Tambuscio that covers the
Holocaust, genocide and human behavior.
"Our program in New Milford teaches the warning signs of genocide,"
Tambuscio said. "The lesson is to teach students to be on guard for
genocide today."
Rabbi Yehuda Rosenberg, principal of the Ulpana School -- a religious
school for girls in the Nahariya district -- offered a presentation
about Israel as a democracy to some of the 45 students in the course.
The son of a Holocaust survivor, Rosenberg told the students that
for modern Israel, the "big issues" are "peace, security, economics."
Rosenberg outlined the role of the legislative body, or Knesset, to
the students, offering them a glimpse of the 120-member parliament and
elections that involve 15 political parties rather than a two-party
system.
Joining Rosenberg on the trip to New Milford -- the only stop at
a U.S. public school -- was co-worker Mercedes Hadad, a teacher at
Ulpana, and Rivka Ben Ami, principal of Remez Elementary School. The
delegation also included Avi Menashes, head of Shechakim Junior and
Senior High School, and Avi Berger, principal of Even Shoham Dati
Elementary School.
Tambuscio is no stranger to Nahariya, the schools or the school
district. She visited the city two months ago through the UJA
Federation of Northern New Jersey's Partnership 2000 program.
The course at New Milford covers the Armenian genocide, the Aramaean
persecution during the Armenian genocide, the Holocaust, and human
behavior and genocide in Cambodia, Rwanda and Darfur.
Each year Tambuscio travels with students to Europe as part of a
Holocaust study tour. This school year's trip in April will visit
Germany, the Czech Republic and Poland, where the students will meet
Holocaust survivors; when they return to the U.S., they will create
outreach programs. In May, a group of students from Nahariya will
visit New Milford.
"The students come back with a sense of responsibility for telling
the stories," said New Milford Superintendent Michael Polizzi. "They
understand that every year there are fewer and fewer survivors,
and they pick up on that ... that resonates with them."
The course is a model program at the high school.
Rosenberg's presentation offered students an idea of how their
counterpart students dress, study and test for college. His insight
and information will tie into a global leadership program to be
introduced into the New Milford curriculum, Polizzi said.
Meredith McCann, a senior who traveled to Europe with Tambuscio last
year, called Rosenberg's talk invaluable.
"Having him speak and having them here is something you really can't
get anywhere else," said McCann, 17. "A lot of questions about Israel
have been cleared up. He's opening our eyes so much to information
that we never really knew before. The questions [about Israel and
the Holocaust] aren't really coming to him from us yet because we're
absorbing so much of what he said today. We've studied the warning
signs to genocide and the Armenian genocide and are now in the
beginning of studying the Holocaust, so the timing [of their visit]
is perfect."
Technology such as Skype and social networking sites are an advantage
now that the students have met all the educators, McCann said.
"The more connections we make, the more connections we'll be able
to have when we want to ask questions," McCann said. "We could
have conversations with Mercedes Hadad or even her students. We'll
definitely make it work."
New Milford senior Ninva Bekdas, 17, is Aramaean and was interested in
Rosenberg's presentation of Israel as a culture that embraces family
and is concerned about keeping the state safe.
"Israel is their home, and they want to protect their home," she said.
"I'm very happy to see that they worked to get their own country. They
went through the Holocaust to get their own country. I'm hoping maybe
sometime we [Aramaeans] find our own country or nation so we can all
be united as one rather than be scattered around the world. That we
can do that, too."
Brenton Prisendorf, 16, was unaware of Israel's required military
service.
"I didn't think it was peaceful there at all when I see all the
fighting on the news," said the high school junior. "He changed my
mind with what he was saying. I was interested about what they give
to their citizens ... that they have to serve in the army and give
back to their country. Israel is very orderly, very structured."
Rosenberg hopes he left the students enlightened about what lies
inside the boundaries of Israel -- declared a state in 1948.
"I wanted them to hear about Israel as it is," Rosenberg said. "At
the end of the day I want them to come and visit Israel."
From: A. Papazian