Frankel Center’s Undergrad Award
Shoah Education Holocaust Memorial Center launches Virtual Museum Experience.
T
he Holocaust Memorial Center (HMC) has launched the Virtual Museum Experience (VME), a new online program for students learning about the Holocaust. When the pandemic hit and HMC had to shut down, HMC’s Education Department knew they didn’t want to stop teaching the lessons of the Holocaust. The team began strategizing how to take the museum experience to students virtually, customizing the content for each particular classroom and staying true to the curriculum. They then came up with a plan. “A member of our education staff can basically Zoom into the classroom, and using photos of artifacts and survivor testimony clips, can have a conversation with the students and teach about the Holocaust,” said Ruth Bergman, HMC education director. Each VME session is facilitated by a HMC educator via Zoom or Google Meet, and lasts approximately 45 minutes. Artwork created by survivors are also among the audio-visual assets incorporated into VME sessions. HMC can tailor a VME to focus on a particular subject, like ghettos, or focus on themes, a popular way teachers like HMC to approach the sessions. Overarching themes from which teachers can choose include Propaganda; Pyramid of Hate (how could the Holocaust happen); Choice and Responsibility; Resistance; Resilience and Returning to Life; and Camps/Final Solution. Once a teacher expresses interest in scheduling a VME, a Holocaust Memorial Center educator has a one-on-one call with the teacher to discuss what the students are learning and the themes that shape the VME content, tailored to each classroom.
These wooden shoes are among the artifacts on the HMC Virtual Experience.
HMC
DANNY SCHWARTZ STAFF WRITER
Usually more than 35,000 students from across the state take field trips to the HMC annually. More than 6,500 students will have participated in a VME within the first five months of 2021. HMC plans to continue the VME program after all capacity restrictions are lifted, due to its massive success. “It has been so much more positive and desired than we even thought,” Bergman said. “We launched the program in February and, so far, we’ve reached 6,413 students. By the time we’re done with the end of the school year, we’ll have reached over 8,000 students. “It’s exciting and very heartening for us because with the rise in antisemitism and prejudice, Holocaust education can’t stop,” Bergman added. “The fact that teachers want us to continue teaching their students and we’re able to continue doing what we do, it’s so important and we’re grateful we have this technology that allows us to do it.” Currently, the Holocaust Memorial Center is booking VMEs for the summer and fall. Teachers can email VME@holocaustcenter. org to schedule a VME. HMC is open Sunday through Thursday with timed appointment tickets available. Beginning Memorial Day weekend, HMC will be offering public tours on a limited basis. Visit holocaustcenter.org for more info.
Every spring the Frankel Center for Judaic Studies at University of Michigan honors a graduate with Miriam Saperstein the Outstanding Undergraduate Student Award. This year’s recipient is Miriam Saperstein of Huntington Woods, who uses the pronoun they. In addition to majoring in Judaic Studies, Saperstein also minored in creative writing. “This award really is a reflection of my excellent professors who helped me take on challenges both academic and personal during my time in undergrad,” Saperstein said. “It’s as much a testament to their teaching as it is to my learning.” Faculty nominate students who have made standout academic achievements and have achieved a grade point average of at least 3.8 in Judaic studies courses. Professor Devi Mays said Saperstein was one of the most impressive students she has had the pleasure of teaching. “They are a thoughtful and astute writer, researcher, and thinker, whose classroom contributions propelled discussion forward and encouraged other students to think more deeply about entrenched historical narratives,” said Mays. After graduation, Saperstein plans on working with the U-M history department on Michigan in the World, an internship program where students, in partnership with the Bentley Historical Library and the College of Literature, Science and the Arts, develop online public exhibitions of research about the history of U-M and its relationships with the wider world. Saperstein then plans on attending Wayne State University’s Master’s in Library and Information Science program. MAY 27 • 2021
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