The California Teachers Collaborative is the first of its kind in the nation.

The statewide network unites California’s 14 leading institutions for Holocaust and genocide education as well as community leaders from diverse ethnic groups across the state.

The JFCS Holocaust Center established the California Teachers Collaborative for Holocaust and Genocide Education in 2021 with support from a $1.9 million grant from the Marin County Office of Education and the State of California.

With continued state funding, by 2027 the California Teachers Collaborative will: 

• Train 8,500 teachers through professional development workshops and institutes.  
• Serve all California school districts with students grades 6-12.  
• Educate 1,062,500 California students.  

Why now? 

• Antisemitic incidents rose by a shocking 41% in California in 2022—the highest number on record.
• The FBI reported a 33% increase in hate crimes in California in 2021.
• Research demonstrates that young people who receive Holocaust education report a deeper understanding of the Jewish community, a more pluralistic attitude, and a greater willingness to challenge intolerant behavior in others. 

Shared goals for the collaborative include: 

• To create new, standards-aligned lessons on the Holocaust and genocide for all 6-12th grade students in California.  
• To empower and unify educators in teaching the lessons of history and about what happens when bias goes unchecked. 
• To combat rising antisemitism and hate by creating more respectful and empathetic next generations. 

Next year, the Collaborative will launch a pivotal new website to hold a library of best-practice curriculum material from members of the Collaborative, available for use in all California schools. 

Through the California Teachers Collaborative, teachers: 

• Connect with leading museums, non-profit organizations, and individual experts in Holocaust and genocide education.
• Implement new curricula developed by the Collaborative, with accompanying professional development and personalized support.
• Take Action to address the surge of antisemitism and hate in California school communities.

Looking to the Future

The Collaborative is also working in close partnership with the Governor’s Council for Holocaust and Genocide Education in a statewide effort to elevate such education for the benefit of all of California’s children and our society as a whole.

Members of the California Teachers Collaborative for Holocaust and Genocide Education

• Anti-Defamation League
• Avenues for Change: Holocaust and Genocide Education
• Cambodian Genocide Resource Center
• Central Valley Holocaust Educators’ Network (CVHEN)
• Facing History and Ourselves
• Genocide Education Project: Armenian Genocide Education
• Holocaust Museum LA
• Jewish Family and Children’s Services Holocaust Center
• Jewish Partisan Educational Foundation
• Museum of Tolerance
• Redbud Resource Group: Indigenous History and Education
• TWIGE Project: Teaching about the Genocides in Rwanda and Guatemala
• USC Shoah Foundation for Visual History and Education
• Uyghur Genocide Online Resource Center

For questions about the California Teachers Collaborative, email Rebecca Hausammann, Associate Director of the JFCS Holocaust Center at [email protected].