Arts & Writing Seminar/Competition
Every spring, the Holocaust Center sponsors a Seminar for middle and high school students at the University of Pittsburgh. This half-day Seminar encourages students to look at various facets or themes of the Holocaust era, i.e., Women in the Holocaust, the role of Righteous Gentiles, the Diversity of Victim Groups During the Holocaust, Children in the Holocaust, Resistance, Liberation, etc.
Begun in 1990 with the underwriting of the Surloff Family, in memory of Earl Surloff, the Seminar also gives students an opportunity to hear from local survivors about their childhoods in Europe, their experiences during World War II and the Holocaust, and their lives after the war ended.
Students who attend the Seminar are also encouraged to participate in the Arts and Writing Competition by entering a poem, short-story, visual art or performing art piece that centers around the year's theme. Although participation in the Competition is not mandatory for those who attend the Seminar (nor is it mandatory for a student to attend the Seminar to participate in the Competition), many who attend submit pieces either through their schools or individually.
Begun in 1985, the Arts and Writing Competition is underwritten by the Hal K. and Diane Waldman Foundation of the United Jewish Federation. After all of the entries have been submitted, they are judged by a group of lay leaders, community members, and professional writers and artists. To ensure complete anonymity, the names of the students are removed from each entry. Once the judges have determined the year's winners, the students and their teachers are notified and the Center sends a representative to the school to present their award(s). The winning art pieces are put on display at the Center for 9 months and the winning art and writing pieces are compiled into a book that is then distributed to each winner, his or her school, Holocaust Center Commission members, Arts and Writing Sub-Committee members and the judges.
Theme: Liberation and the Aftermath
This topic will encourage students to explore the time frame from the end of the war (May 1945) to the time when the survivors had found safe haven and begun to rebuild their lives (mid/late 1950’s). Students should look at the DP Camps, the Nuremberg Trials, how the Holocaust helped to “fast track” Israel becoming a state (including the story of the Exodus), how survivors had to find new homelands and how some of the perpetrators were given a “free pass” or went into hiding in foreign countries. Students can also explore the relationship between the new country of Israel and post-war Germany
Seminar Days/Dates:
Middle School - Tuesday, March 8, 2011
High School - Wednesday, March 9, 2011
For more information: holocaustinfo@UJFpittsburgh.org.
School Registration Form >>
More information here.
Every spring, the Holocaust Center sponsors a Seminar for middle and high school students at the University of Pittsburgh. This half-day Seminar encourages students to look at various facets or themes of the Holocaust era, i.e., Women in the Holocaust, the role of Righteous Gentiles, the Diversity of Victim Groups During the Holocaust, Children in the Holocaust, Resistance, Liberation, etc.
Begun in 1990 with the underwriting of the Surloff Family, in memory of Earl Surloff, the Seminar also gives students an opportunity to hear from local survivors about their childhoods in Europe, their experiences during World War II and the Holocaust, and their lives after the war ended.
Students who attend the Seminar are also encouraged to participate in the Arts and Writing Competition by entering a poem, short-story, visual art or performing art piece that centers around the year's theme. Although participation in the Competition is not mandatory for those who attend the Seminar (nor is it mandatory for a student to attend the Seminar to participate in the Competition), many who attend submit pieces either through their schools or individually.
Begun in 1985, the Arts and Writing Competition is underwritten by the Hal K. and Diane Waldman Foundation of the United Jewish Federation. After all of the entries have been submitted, they are judged by a group of lay leaders, community members, and professional writers and artists. To ensure complete anonymity, the names of the students are removed from each entry. Once the judges have determined the year's winners, the students and their teachers are notified and the Center sends a representative to the school to present their award(s). The winning art pieces are put on display at the Center for 9 months and the winning art and writing pieces are compiled into a book that is then distributed to each winner, his or her school, Holocaust Center Commission members, Arts and Writing Sub-Committee members and the judges.
Theme: Liberation and the Aftermath
This topic will encourage students to explore the time frame from the end of the war (May 1945) to the time when the survivors had found safe haven and begun to rebuild their lives (mid/late 1950’s). Students should look at the DP Camps, the Nuremberg Trials, how the Holocaust helped to “fast track” Israel becoming a state (including the story of the Exodus), how survivors had to find new homelands and how some of the perpetrators were given a “free pass” or went into hiding in foreign countries. Students can also explore the relationship between the new country of Israel and post-war Germany
Seminar Days/Dates:
Middle School - Tuesday, March 8, 2011
High School - Wednesday, March 9, 2011
For more information: holocaustinfo@UJFpittsburgh.org.
School Registration Form >>
More information here.
