Manovill Holocaust History Fellowship

Available only through JFCS, the Manovill Holocaust History Fellowship offers high school students a rare opportunity to study the Holocaust and patterns of genocide at the college level. Each year, eight fellows are selected to conduct in-depth research into the nature of the Holocaust and other genocides and to gain the skills that will allow them to serve as effective advocates for strengthening respect in the Bay Area.

The seven-month fellowship emphasizes experiential learning. Participants hear from local Holocaust survivors, pursue research on a topic of their choice, teach their peers, and participate in community events. Upon successful completion of the fellowship, students are credited with up to 60 hours of community service.

Fellowship Components

A school year as a fellow includes:

• Connections with local Holocaust survivors: Fellows have the opportunity to learn firsthand from those who fled Germany, Poland, and other Nazi-occupied countries, and survived concentration camps, such as Auschwitz and Ravensbrück, before starting new lives in the Bay Area.

• Research in the Tauber Holocaust Library and Archives: Over the course of the year, fellows conduct research using both primary and secondary sources. At the conclusion of the program, fellows write a college-level thesis on a topic of their choice.

• Promotion of education and tolerance: By creating their own lesson plan and teaching it to students at their school, fellows enhance their understanding of the value of remembrance, the importance of Holocaust education, and the connection between the Holocaust and current genocides.

• Enhanced Media Literacy: Fellows will learn to create a short documentary film with the USC Shoah Foundation’s iWitness program. Through the film project, students learn the value of Holocaust survivors’ oral history testimony in the study of history and the importance of bearing witness.

• Flexible schedules: Fellows lead busy lives: school, sports, clubs, homework, and other activities. The fellowship allows participants to choose when they want to work in the Tauber Holocaust Library, conduct research, and work on their thesis project.

To request an application for the 2017-2018 Manovill Fellowship, please complete our Application Request form. For questions or additional information, please contact Morgan Blum Schneider, Director of Education, at MorganB@jfcs.org or 415-449-1289.

The Syllabus

An in-depth study of the Holocaust and the patterns of genocide challenges fellows to think critically and to consider their responsibility as citizens in a rapidly changing, complex world. Fellows use resources of the Tauber Holocaust Library and Archives at JFCS to engage in a rigorous examination of topics. The syllabus includes the following topics:

• Flight from Nazi-occupied Europe
• Eugenics and propaganda
• Life in the ghettos
• The Final Solution
• The perpetrators
• Rescue and resistance
• Patterns of genocide
• Human rights abuses and genocide of Native Americans, Australian aborigines, and Armenians
• The persecution and extermination of ethnic minorities in Rwanda, Cambodia, the former Yugoslavia, and Darfur

Fellowship Components

• Group Seminars: Fellows meet twice monthly at the JFCS Holocaust Center in San Francisco to participate in seminars that are led by the Director of Holocaust Education and that feature guest speakers and Holocaust survivors.

• Cultural and Commemorative Events: Fellows volunteer at community events to learn the value of remembrance, the importance of Holocaust awareness, and the connections between the Holocaust and current genocides.

• Film Project: Fellows will learn about the significance of oral history and create their own film projects incorporating film footage from the USC Shoah Foundation.

• Advocating for Genocide Awareness: Throughout April, fellows develop a lesson plan, learn teaching skills, and go into their communities to educate their peers about the patterns of genocide.

• Projects and Thesis: Under the supervision of the Director of Holocaust Education, fellows spend four hours monthly in the Tauber Holocaust Library developing, researching, and writing several projects, as well as a thesis that will be available to the Bay Area community.

• Directed Readings and Study: Throughout the semester, fellows respond to literature, music, art, and film in writing and multimedia formats and use Facebook to discuss and debate topics.

Meeting Times

The Fellowship runs December through June. Fellows meet for group seminars two Mondays a month, 4:30 – 7:00 pm, at the JFCS Holocaust Center in San Francisco. Seminar attendance is mandatory.

Stipend for Fellows

The Manovill Holocaust History Fellowship is generously underwritten by the Lilly Manovill Endrei Education Fund at JFCS, and there is no charge for participants. JFCS also covers travel expenses by public transportation from outside of San Francisco for seminars and research hours. Fellows earn a $500 stipend upon successful completion of the program, and are credited with up to 60 hours of community service.