CHADRON HOLOCAUST CONFERENCE PRESENTERS
Jack Adler was born in Pabianice, Poland on February 1st, 1929. his immediate family consisted of his parents, two sisters, a half-brother and himself. His extended family included grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins - 83 in all. Life was simple.
Everything changed during the first week of September, 1939 when Nazi soldiers marched into and occupied his hometown. The Pabianice Ghetto was soon liquidated, with those surviving being sent to the larger Lodz Ghetto, where the treatment was even worse. Jack was the only member of his immediate family to survive the camps.
He was liberated May 1st, 1945, at the age of 16. He graduated from Central YMCA High School in Chicago in 1950, attended Roosevelt University, and graduated from Walton School of Commerce in accounting and business administration in 1953. He also served in the U.S. Army during the Korean war.
Everything changed during the first week of September, 1939 when Nazi soldiers marched into and occupied his hometown. The Pabianice Ghetto was soon liquidated, with those surviving being sent to the larger Lodz Ghetto, where the treatment was even worse. Jack was the only member of his immediate family to survive the camps.
He was liberated May 1st, 1945, at the age of 16. He graduated from Central YMCA High School in Chicago in 1950, attended Roosevelt University, and graduated from Walton School of Commerce in accounting and business administration in 1953. He also served in the U.S. Army during the Korean war.
Christina Chavarria currently serves as Program Coordinator of National Outreach for Teacher Initiatives at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM) in Washington, DC. In this capacity, she coordinates professional development programs for educators at the national level at the Museum.
In addition she has given presentations on how to teach the Holocaust in the U.S., Europe, Japan, Israel, and Latin America. She holds a B.A. and M.A. in Comparative Literature from the University of Dallas and has been teaching the Holocaust for 22 years. Ms Chavarria was Director of Education at Holocaust Museum Houston for six and a half years, and taught high school English for nine years in public schools prior to that. Christina has been in her current position for six and a half years, and believes in the importance of teaching about the Holocaust lies in its complexity, relevancy for today, and the need to teach it in a pedagogically and historically sound manner.
In addition she has given presentations on how to teach the Holocaust in the U.S., Europe, Japan, Israel, and Latin America. She holds a B.A. and M.A. in Comparative Literature from the University of Dallas and has been teaching the Holocaust for 22 years. Ms Chavarria was Director of Education at Holocaust Museum Houston for six and a half years, and taught high school English for nine years in public schools prior to that. Christina has been in her current position for six and a half years, and believes in the importance of teaching about the Holocaust lies in its complexity, relevancy for today, and the need to teach it in a pedagogically and historically sound manner.
Jane Connealy currently serves as the Satellite Seminar Coordinator and Professional Development Consultant for the Memorial Library, New York City, NY and the Holocaust Educator’s Network. She serves as a trainer for Memorial Library regional trainings in Nebraska and other states across the country. Jane has her B.S.in Education, and earned her M.A. in English in 2010, at the University of Nebraska Lincoln.
Jane has taught the lessons of the Holocaust, at the middle and high school levels, throughout her twenty-four year teaching career. She is an alumna of Bearing Witness with the Anti-Defamation League and several Memorial Library and National Writing Project joint workshops. She is a member of the Nebraska Holocaust Education Consortium. On the importance of teaching the Holocaust: Important in historical context, the lessons of the Holocaust are significantly important to contemporary lessons in the development of a compassionate and just modern society. Holocaust education offers opportunities to educators who wish to address difficult issues related to human rights, tolerance, anti-Semitism, racism, genocide and traumatic memories.
Jane has taught the lessons of the Holocaust, at the middle and high school levels, throughout her twenty-four year teaching career. She is an alumna of Bearing Witness with the Anti-Defamation League and several Memorial Library and National Writing Project joint workshops. She is a member of the Nebraska Holocaust Education Consortium. On the importance of teaching the Holocaust: Important in historical context, the lessons of the Holocaust are significantly important to contemporary lessons in the development of a compassionate and just modern society. Holocaust education offers opportunities to educators who wish to address difficult issues related to human rights, tolerance, anti-Semitism, racism, genocide and traumatic memories.
Katie Elsener recently retired from teaching at St. Pius X High School in Lincoln, NE, after 24 years of teaching. She earned a B.S. in English and a M.A. in Curriculum Instruction, both from the University of Nebraska Lincoln.
Katie is a member of Holocaust Educator's Network, a facilitator of the Nebraska Satellite Memorial Library Seminar for educators, and a member of the Nebraska Holocaust Education Consortium.
Katie is a member of Holocaust Educator's Network, a facilitator of the Nebraska Satellite Memorial Library Seminar for educators, and a member of the Nebraska Holocaust Education Consortium.
Liz Feldstern is the Executive Director of the Institute for Holocaust Eduation. She holds a B.A. degree in Jewish Studies from Rutgers University, an M.A. degree in Conflict Management from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and is a certified mediator.
During both her university degrees Liz conducted extensive research on the Displaced Persons camps that housed survivors of the Holocaust in the years immediately following WWII. Liz coordinated Foreign Relations for the Israel Center for Excellence through Education, located in Jerusalem, Israel, for five years. In this capacity she planned and implemented teacher training and professional development seminars for hundreds of teachers in Israel, the United States and Singapore. Liz began directing the Institute for Holocaust Education in spring of 2013.
During both her university degrees Liz conducted extensive research on the Displaced Persons camps that housed survivors of the Holocaust in the years immediately following WWII. Liz coordinated Foreign Relations for the Israel Center for Excellence through Education, located in Jerusalem, Israel, for five years. In this capacity she planned and implemented teacher training and professional development seminars for hundreds of teachers in Israel, the United States and Singapore. Liz began directing the Institute for Holocaust Education in spring of 2013.
Corey Harbaugh is Co-Founder & Co-Director of the Holocaust Educator Network of Michigan, a satellite program of The Memorial Library in New York City and the national Holocaust Educator Network. His program offers Holocaust education and resources for teachers from across Michigan. He is a member of the Holocaust Education Council of Michigan, works with The USC Shoah Foundation as a Master Teacher in the Teaching with Testimony program, and is a 2013 teacher fellow of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. Harbaugh teaches a nine-week Holocaust unit as part of the senior English seminar he teaches at Gobles High School in Gobles, MI; the unit is a combination of literature, writing, and history, but also a deep exploration of a period in our recent past when human beings, communities, nations, and the world allowed hatred and fanaticism to be acted out in its most extreme way.
Nate Larsen currently teaches secondary Social Sciences at Aurora High School, in Aurora, NE. He earned a Masters in Educational Leadership from Doane College in May 2008 and a Bachelors in Secondary Education with an emphasis in Social Sciences from the University of Nebraska Lincoln in May 2000.
Nate has participated in workshops through the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, has taken Echoes & Reflections training, and participated in the Transatlantic Outreach Program during the summer of 2013, which took him to Germany for two weeks. He has used what he has learned created lessons dealing with the Holocaust for the various classes during his ten years of teaching. Nate is a member of the Nebraska Holocaust Education Consortium.
Nate has participated in workshops through the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, has taken Echoes & Reflections training, and participated in the Transatlantic Outreach Program during the summer of 2013, which took him to Germany for two weeks. He has used what he has learned created lessons dealing with the Holocaust for the various classes during his ten years of teaching. Nate is a member of the Nebraska Holocaust Education Consortium.
David Nienkamp is a retired teacher, having taught for over three decades at Sandy Creek Public Schools in rural south-central Nebraska. David earned his Bachelor of Arts Degree from Doane College in 1969 and his Masters of Science in Education Degree from the University of Nebraska at Kearney in l975.
As information and resources became accessible in the 1980s and 1990s, David began to incorporate aspects of the Holocaust in the teaching of his history classes. In 1999 David applied for and was accepted for a Teaching Fellowship at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. This led to his attending the 2000 Vladka Meed Traveling Seminar to Poland and Israel. In 2007 Dave became part of the Regional Education Corps of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Dave is a member of the Nebraska Holocaust Education Consortium.
As information and resources became accessible in the 1980s and 1990s, David began to incorporate aspects of the Holocaust in the teaching of his history classes. In 1999 David applied for and was accepted for a Teaching Fellowship at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. This led to his attending the 2000 Vladka Meed Traveling Seminar to Poland and Israel. In 2007 Dave became part of the Regional Education Corps of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Dave is a member of the Nebraska Holocaust Education Consortium.
Harris Payne is currently the Director of Social Studies for the Nebraska Department of Education. He has a B.S. in Secondary Education and a M.S. in Geography from the University of Nebraska at Omaha, and a M.E. in Educational Leadership from Doane College, Lincoln, NE.
In addition to many years of teaching experience, Harris has been a Curriculum Specialist and Supervisor of Social Studies for Omaha Public Schools, and is an active member of the Nebraska Holocaust Education Consortium.
In addition to many years of teaching experience, Harris has been a Curriculum Specialist and Supervisor of Social Studies for Omaha Public Schools, and is an active member of the Nebraska Holocaust Education Consortium.
Sandy Renken is a 7-12th grade social studies teacher at Freeman Public Schools in Adams, NE where she teaches a semester long Holocaust course. She graduated from Kearney State College in 1990 with a B.A. in Education and obtained her Masters of Education in Curriculum and Instruction from Doane College in 2004.
Sandy was chosen by the Embassy of the Republic of Poland in Washington, DC to attend the Holocaust Teacher’s Summit 2012: The Year of Janusz Korczak, in Warsaw and Krakow, Poland. She was also chosen as a Museum Teacher Fellow for the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. She has spoken at several conferences throughout the nation and is an active member of the Nebraska Holocaust Education Consortium.
Sandy was chosen by the Embassy of the Republic of Poland in Washington, DC to attend the Holocaust Teacher’s Summit 2012: The Year of Janusz Korczak, in Warsaw and Krakow, Poland. She was also chosen as a Museum Teacher Fellow for the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. She has spoken at several conferences throughout the nation and is an active member of the Nebraska Holocaust Education Consortium.
Phip Ross is currently a member of the English department at Southeast Community College in Lincoln, NE. He earned his B.A. in Journalism from the University of Nebraska Kearney, and an Masters in English from the University of Nebraska Lincoln. Phip has incorporated what he has learned about Holocaust education and history into the reading and writing courses that he has taught for several years. Speaking to the importance of Holocaust education, Phip commented that, “The victims, perpetrators, and bystanders of the Holocaust have lessons about how we live more fully in the present with others and ensure a future that can outstrip hatred in its silence, in its rage, and in its many other languages and manifestations.” Phip participated in the Memorial Library Summer Seminar on Holocaust Education in New York, a program of the Holocaust Educators Network, and is a member of the Nebraska Holocaust Education Consortium.
Tom Seib is currently a history teacher at Pius X High School, Lincoln, Nebraska. He holds B.S. in Political Science and History from Fort Hays State University and M.A. in Educational Administration from the University of Nebraska.
Tom has spent 39 years in education, 14 years teaching the Holocaust. He was named Nebraska Writing Project Administrator of the Year in 2005, and is a Department Chair and a Nebraska State AdvancEd/North Central Council Representative. He trained at the Memorial Library Holocaust Educators Seminar: New York City in 2008 and the Holocaust Educators Institute: New York City in 2010, and is an active member of Nebraska Holocaust Educators Consortium.
Tom has spent 39 years in education, 14 years teaching the Holocaust. He was named Nebraska Writing Project Administrator of the Year in 2005, and is a Department Chair and a Nebraska State AdvancEd/North Central Council Representative. He trained at the Memorial Library Holocaust Educators Seminar: New York City in 2008 and the Holocaust Educators Institute: New York City in 2010, and is an active member of Nebraska Holocaust Educators Consortium.
Donna Walter is the Education Coordinator for the Institute for Holocaust Education and Coordinator for the Nebraska Holocaust Education Consortium. She received a B.A. in English from Western Illinois University in 1969 and a M.S. in Reading from University of Nebraska at Omaha in 1979.
Donna was an 8th grade Language Arts teacher, and was also the Language Arts coordinator, at St. Pius X/St. Leo in Omaha for 23 years. Donna was the recipient of the 2012 National Catholic Educational Association Distinguished Teacher Award and is an alumna of the Belfer National Conference of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Bearing Witness, and Bearing Witness Advanced with the Anti-Defamation League. She has attended numerous Holocaust workshops and has traveled to several Holocaust sites.
Donna was an 8th grade Language Arts teacher, and was also the Language Arts coordinator, at St. Pius X/St. Leo in Omaha for 23 years. Donna was the recipient of the 2012 National Catholic Educational Association Distinguished Teacher Award and is an alumna of the Belfer National Conference of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Bearing Witness, and Bearing Witness Advanced with the Anti-Defamation League. She has attended numerous Holocaust workshops and has traveled to several Holocaust sites.
Michael Young is a retired history teacher and social studies department chairperson for Omaha Burke High School, and has been an adjunct professor for Doane College, Bellevue University and the Metropolitan Community College in Omaha. Earlier honors include a three-week travel-study grant to Poland and Israel from the Holocaust Survivors Organization, winning of the Omaha Public Schools Buffett Award, Fulbright Scholarship to Korea and election to the National Council for Social Studies.
He currently is co-director of the Teaching American History Grant for the Omaha Public Schools and liaison to the supervisor of the physical education and athletic department for the Omaha Schools Academic Coaches Program. He received his BA in history from Doane College and his MA in U.S. history from the University of Nebraska at Omaha. Michael sits on the Executive Board of the Nebraska State Council for the Social Studies and is an active member of the Nebraska Holocaust Education Consortium.
He currently is co-director of the Teaching American History Grant for the Omaha Public Schools and liaison to the supervisor of the physical education and athletic department for the Omaha Schools Academic Coaches Program. He received his BA in history from Doane College and his MA in U.S. history from the University of Nebraska at Omaha. Michael sits on the Executive Board of the Nebraska State Council for the Social Studies and is an active member of the Nebraska Holocaust Education Consortium.