Hi Maya! I just passed through your fair city as I was moving my daughter from one house to another in New Orleans. It is amazing that you have a family connection to TOLI. I look forward to meeting you.

Hi Misty! You have been quite the traveler! I traveled to Poland with Yad Vashem in 2019 and cannot say enough wonderful things about their programming. When you were in Jerusalem, was Sheryl Ochayon your guide? I hope to apply to the program next summer. I was also looped into the study of the Holocaust when I was in high school when we read…[Read more]

Hi Kelly! I love that you are a part of the Colorado Holocaust Educators group. I have been to Boulder and Denver to train with Todd and the Yahad group (Ewa, etc.) with HBB. I teach the HBB and IBD by Fr. Desbois in my senior Holocaust course. Todd always keeps me in the loop even though I live in St. Louis. I am curious about your senior…[Read more]

Hi Lisa! It is so great to be able to call myself a fellow Gratz graduate. I loved when you told me about your final graduate work with multiple museums. I cannot wait to catch up with you in NYC.

Hi Ashley. Great post. I like how you mentioned guilt versus responsibility. They do have to be examined because they are two entirely different “animals” for a lack of a better word. It does beg the question with Krug’s graphic narrative. Do the Germans born after the WAR come into the world with collective guilt for what others had done…[Read more]

Hi Barb. Thank you for your post. Wow, you go girl with all your activism. I commend you for getting out there and voicing your stance on a myriad of political, social, and racial issues. I do have to mention something here about service programs through schools and mission work–they are not all to “assuage some sort of guilt”. When my…[Read more]

Hi Mary. What a post! My heart hurts to hear how much you hated school during some of the middle school years. I, too, grew up in Illinois, and I agree that my classmates and the educators were kind. We did not have to foster the idea nor introduce the idea–it was just there–deep inside these wonderful humans. (Maybe something in the…[Read more]

In my home and during my upbringing, education was highly valued. Both of my parents had advanced degrees and all of my siblings went on to earn their advanced degrees with a few of them pursuing a path as educators. My school experience was one that was nurturing and welcoming. All of my elementary school teachers were warm, compassionate,…[Read more]

Wow ladies! So many insightful and true comments from all of you. The people who say that teachers only work from 8–3 and have summers off have not walked in our shoes! Because we have a deep love for all those awkward, brilliant, complicated beings who walk through the thresholds of our classrooms and in to our hearts–we often find it…[Read more]

Hi Julia. Beautiful post. Your first teaching moments in Baltimore sounded like “a baptism of fire”! My goodness! I admire your grit, persistence, and nurturing spirit to show your students what it means to be authentic. This is a lesson that they will carry with them throughout their entire lives. I applaud you for trudging on and giving…[Read more]

Hi Sarah! I think you’ve “hit the nail on the head” about the preference many humans have to write it down (journal) when they have strong emotions about people, literature and the world. I think the journaling and writing back and forth of Sondra with her students showed the development of their individual writing and the relationship with…[Read more]