A new initiative led by the Interdisciplinary Program in Jewish Studies in the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Kentucky features a collaboration with educators from across the Commonwealth to enhance K-12 Holocaust education and provide professional learning and teaching tools necessary to meet the requirements of the 2018 Ann Klein and Fred Gross Holocaust Education Act.
Funded by a grant from the Jewish Heritage Fund for Excellence (JHFE), the UK Holocaust Education Initiative will create a network of teachers across the Commonwealth who feel confident and capable of including Holocaust curricula in their classrooms. The initiative will create opportunities for interdisciplinary content sharing, pedagogical training, and collaborative planning.
From a pool of highly qualified applicants and through an extremely competitive process, the steering committee chose only 20 teachers to lead this initiative, and North Bullitt High School Teacher, Emily Knight, was one of them.
“We are very lucky to have an educator such as Emily! I am eager to see how she flourishes within this project!” said NBHS Principal, Kristi Lynch.
“Holocaust education has always been a passion of mine. I’m so excited and honored to have been chosen by the University of Kentucky and the Jewish Heritage Fund for Excellence to participate in this effort to help Kentucky educators across disciplines incorporate Holocaust Education into their curriculum.” said Emily Knight.
Teachers in this chosen group will work with UK Faculty in Jewish Studies, the College of Education, and other content experts during the summer and the 2022-23 academic year to:
- Deepen understanding of the Holocaust and related genocide studies
- Collaborate to design school and district-specific lessons
- Plan and execute Holocaust education workshops for up to 250 teachers across Kentucky
- Become content leaders in schools and districts
Instructional materials created by Kentucky teachers through the UK Holocaust Initiative will be professionally peer-reviewed and then shared freely on the Initiative’s website.
“UK faculty will use their expert knowledge to empower Kentucky teachers with extensive middle and high school classroom experience and expertise by educating and collaborating with them and their peers. Through these multiple layers of collaborative work, we will create networks of experts at the local level and a sustainable model for educational excellence,” Project Co-Director Janice Fernheimer explains.
A steering committee of experts from the College of Arts and Sciences, the College of Education, Fayette County Public Schools, and two Louisville educators will guide the grant's implementation. UK’s Center for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning collaborates on program design, pedagogical framing, and the development of instructional materials.