Conference Details
2023 Arthur and Rochelle Belfer National Conference for Educators
June 26–28, 2023
Registration for the 2023 Conference is now open
Designed to support accurate, meaningful teaching about the Holocaust, the Belfer National Conference for Educators is the US Holocaust Memorial Museum’s flagship event for secondary school educators across the country.
The conference invites participants to engage with current historical research and instructional best practices. Educators discover and learn how to use various classroom resources, find inspiration in new ideas, and connect with peers engaged in similar work across the United States and worldwide.
The free 3-day virtual conference features sessions designed for:
- Middle and high school educators
- Belfer conferences alumni
- District, state, and school-level administrators and curriculum leaders
During the conference, participants will:
- Access historically accurate classroom-ready lessons and resources based on the Museum’s extensive collections
- Learn how teaching about the Holocaust meets curricular goals and standards
- Hear directly from Holocaust survivors and seasoned educators
- Participate in live, interactive sessions with Museum historians, who are subject matter experts and among the most authoritative voices in the field
- Join a worldwide support community dedicated to helping educators teach Holocaust history
Benefits of participation:
- Earn 24 hours of state-certified professional development.
- Access sessions live or on-demand through a flexible virtual platform.
- Free books and resources mailed directly to you (domestic attendees only)
Please note that real-time attendance is not required at the Conference — all content will be available to registrants for up to six months after the event.
2023 Key Themes
This year’s conference addresses two key themes critical to teaching about the Holocaust:
Teaching with Evidence
In 50 countries across six continents, the Museum is urgently collecting evidence of the Holocaust before it is too late—before fragile documents and artifacts disintegrate and while those who can bear witness are still able to do so.
This year’s conference takes you behind the scenes of the Museum’s vast collections, places not open to the public, sharing lessons and classroom strategies.
The Role of Antisemitism during the Holocaust
There is a documented dramatic increase in antisemitic incidents in the United States: whether from politicians, athletes, entertainers, the media, or other people of influence; or online; or in public spaces such as a bridge in Los Angeles or a college football game in Florida—antisemitic rhetoric is increasing in frequency, visibility, and intensity.
Teachers are on the front lines of educating about antisemitism, and this conference provides valuable resources and support.
Holocaust Survivor Susan Warsinger
Susan (Hilsenrath) Warsinger
Holocaust survivor Susan (Hilsenrath) Warsinger will discuss the importance of first-person testimony and the unique perspective it provides for teaching about American history as well as Holocaust history.
Susan Warsinger was born in Bad Kreuznach, Germany, in 1929. Following Kristallnacht, Susan and her brother, Joseph, were smuggled into France. After Germany invaded France in May 1940, they were evacuated from a children’s home in Paris and fled with their guardians to the unoccupied part of the country. They eventually immigrated to the United States in September 1941 and were reunited with their parents and younger brother. Her experiences are featured in the documentary The US and the Holocaust.
Featured Session Topics
See full conference agenda below
Conference sessions support secondary school educators and administrators with all levels of experience, offering resources and practical strategies for English and history classrooms, and other subject areas, including:
- How teachers can help students make appropriate connections to the past
- How the United States government and the American people responded to Nazism
- How to build a unit—from a day to semester—using Museum resources
- How to highlight survivor stories in your curriculum
- How to share information from live history sessions with Museum historians to prompt student thinking
- How teaching about the Holocaust helps curriculum leaders and administrators meet standards
Full Conference Agenda
Morning sessions begin each day at 9:45 am ET; afternoon sessions begin at noon and end at 3 pm ET.
Monday, June 26, 2023
Morning
- Welcome to the Conference
- Why the Jews? Nazi Racial Antisemitism
- Guidelines for Teaching about the Holocaust
- History Speaks if We Listen: Historical Connections in the Classroom
- Americans and the Holocaust
- Monday’s keynote: Nazi Ideology with Dr. Will Meinecke and Dr. Edna Friedberg
Lunch Break
Afternoon
- A Professor’s Plea: Exploring the Franz Goldberger Collections with Suzy Snyder and Ron Coleman
- Experiencing History through Material Culture with Dr. Mark Alexander
- Propaganda of “Denazification” in Ukraine with Dr. Peter Black
Tuesday, June 27, 2023
Morning
- Start Where You Are: Teaching about the Holocaust
- Spanish Language Museum Resources
- Reaching all Students: Learning Modifications for Museum Resources
- Context is Crucial: the Holocaust Literature Guide
- Timeline Lesson: Contextualizing Holocaust History
- Art, Memory, and Authentic Assessment
- Classroom-Ready Lessons
- Constructing a Holocaust Unit using Museum Resources
Lunch Break
Afternoon
- Nazi Persecution of Persons with Disabilities with Dr. Patricia Heberer-Rice
- Nazi Looting and Postwar Restitution with Dr. Lisa Leff
- Propaganda: The Art of Arthur Szyk with Dr. Steve Luckert
Wednesday, June 28, 2023
Morning
On this day, choose from the following:
- Trauma and Resilience: Postwar Survivor Testimony OR Holocaust Education and Curriculum Requirements (for supervisors and curriculum leaders)
- Why Didn’t They Just Leave? Challenges of Escape OR Diaries and Memoirs in Historical Context: Night and Anne Frank Timeline Extension Lessons
- Teaching with Survivor Testimony OR Teaching with Primary Sources
- Teaching about the Holocaust in the English Classroom OR Teaching about Racial “Science” in the US and Germany
- Wednesday’s Keynote: Every Object Tells How and Why: The Museum’s Collection of Record
Lunch Break
Afternoon
- Antisemitism and Economics in Nazi Germany with Dr. Lindsay MacNeill
- Conversation with a Holocaust Survivor with Susan Warsinger
- Motivation and Choice during the Holocaust with Dr. Jake Newsome
- Conference Closing
This program is made possible with generous support from the Arthur and Rochelle Belfer Foundation.
Please direct any questions to Chelsea Halling-Nye at challing@ushmm.org.
