NHEC Advisory Board
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.
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.
Mark Gudgel is a 2004 graduate of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln where he majored in English Education, Mark Gudgel earned a Master’s in theology from Grace University in 2009, completed a Master’s Module in Holocaust Education at the University of London Institute of Education in 2010, and is presently pursuing an Ed.D. in Character Education from Regent University; the focus of his dissertation is the use of film to teach about the Holocaust in American secondary schools. A fellow of both the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington D.C. and the Imperial War Museum in London, England, Gudgel is the author of more than a dozen articles and essays about the Holocaust, genocide, Rwanda, antisemitism and education, and has presented at conferences all over the United States, Europe and Africa. Gudgel is the co-founder and Executive Director of the Educators’ Institute for Human Rights, a non-profit organization striving to help teachers in nations recovering from genocide and atrocities to address issues of human rights in their own classrooms. Gudgel’s second book, Accessing Darfur, An Educator’s Guide to Addressing the Ongoing Genocide in Sudan, was released in the spring of 2011. In the fall of 2012, Gudgel gave a TED talk on Holocaust education and the role of young people in changing the world. In the spring of 2013, Gudgel was a Fulbright Scholar at the University of London Institute of Education where he studied the impact of vocabulary and language on student perceptions of the Holocaust. Gudgel presently teaches English at Omaha's North High School.
Nate Larsen is currently the secondary assistant principal and athletic/activities director at Logan View Jr/Sr High School in Hooper, NE. He earned a Masters degree in Educational Leadership from Doane College in May 2008, and a Bachelors degree 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, participated in Echoes and Reflections training and been a presenter at several workshops and conferences on various topics. He is a fellow of (2009 and 2013), and was recently a group leader (2016) for the Transatlantic Outreach Program through the Goethe Institut. Through those experiences he has traveled to several Holocaust related sites throughout Germany. Nate also serves as a member of the Nebraska Holocaust Educators Consortium.
Nate has participated in workshops through the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, participated in Echoes and Reflections training and been a presenter at several workshops and conferences on various topics. He is a fellow of (2009 and 2013), and was recently a group leader (2016) for the Transatlantic Outreach Program through the Goethe Institut. Through those experiences he has traveled to several Holocaust related sites throughout Germany. Nate also serves as a member of the Nebraska Holocaust Educators 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 trained at the Memorial Library Holocaust Educators Seminar: New York City in 2014 and 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 is 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 trained at the Memorial Library Holocaust Educators Seminar: New York City in 2014 and 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 is 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.
Jen Stastny earned her Bachelors of Arts degress in English and French and secondary teaching certification in both areas from the University of Nebraska - Lincoln. In 2004, she earned her Masters of Arts degree in English from the University of Nebraska - Omaha, with a concentration in medieval British literature.
She became interested in teaching the lessons of the Holocaust in 1998 while an English teacher at Omaha Central High School. At that time, she took a class at UNK about teaching tolerance and the lessons of the Holocaust. Soon after, she began attending workshops at the Institute of Holocaust Education in Omaha. Through her work with the IHE and the Echoes and Reflections curriculum, she was able to develop a one-semester Holocaust literature class for seniors at Central. Jen is currently in her seventeenth year at Central High School and this is the ninth year of her Holocaust literature class in which more than 150 seniors are enrolled.
She became interested in teaching the lessons of the Holocaust in 1998 while an English teacher at Omaha Central High School. At that time, she took a class at UNK about teaching tolerance and the lessons of the Holocaust. Soon after, she began attending workshops at the Institute of Holocaust Education in Omaha. Through her work with the IHE and the Echoes and Reflections curriculum, she was able to develop a one-semester Holocaust literature class for seniors at Central. Jen is currently in her seventeenth year at Central High School and this is the ninth year of her Holocaust literature class in which more than 150 seniors are enrolled.
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.
Paul W. Smith received his B.S. from the University of Northern Colorado and his M.S. from Chadron State College. He has completed additional graduate studies at the University of Wyoming and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Paul is married to his high school sweetheart and is blessed with two grown children.
Paul has been teaching in the classroom for over 30 years and currently teaches at Lincoln Southeast High School in Lincoln, NE. He has taught about the Holocaust and other genocides his entire career. In order to prepare for his semester long elective course currently being taught in Lincoln’s high schools, Paul has studied at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum for several workshops and has traveled to Poland visiting various camps and ghettos. He has also traveled to Israel to look at the country through the eyes of Jewish Holocaust survivors. Paul serves on the Institute for Holocaust Education’s Governance Council and serves as part of the Nebraska Holocaust Educator's Consortium.
Paul has been teaching in the classroom for over 30 years and currently teaches at Lincoln Southeast High School in Lincoln, NE. He has taught about the Holocaust and other genocides his entire career. In order to prepare for his semester long elective course currently being taught in Lincoln’s high schools, Paul has studied at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum for several workshops and has traveled to Poland visiting various camps and ghettos. He has also traveled to Israel to look at the country through the eyes of Jewish Holocaust survivors. Paul serves on the Institute for Holocaust Education’s Governance Council and serves as part of the Nebraska Holocaust Educator's Consortium.
Sydney Tetrault attended University in Canada where she received a Bachelor in Physical Education, a Masters in English/Language Arts, a Reading Specialist endorsement as well as a Special Education Endorsement. Sydney taught for 21 years in Canada serving grades from 1 to 12. She was instrumental in implementing a Holocaust curriculum in Canada and resumed her work here in Nebraska after she left Canada. Sydney is currently a high school English teacher at an at-risk high school in Lincoln, Nebraska, and continued with her passion for teaching the Holocaust. Sydney taught a Literature of the Holocaust class for 6 years in Canada and has been teaching the class for 12 years in Lincoln. She is a member of the Nebraska Holocaust Education Consortium and has recently travelled to both Poland and Israel.
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.