Contact:
Kara Driscoll, Holocaust & Humanity Center, (513) 638-0508, [email protected]
Sarah Weiss, Holocaust & Humanity Center, (513)487-3055, [email protected]
HHC ready to take lead in work with Holocaust commission
COLUMBUS (June 30, 2021) – Ohio Governor Mike DeWine has appointed Sarah L. Weiss, chief executive officer of the Nancy & David Wolf Holocaust & Humanity Center, to the Holocaust and Genocide Memorial and Education Commission.
Weiss will serve on the commission for a term beginning June 30, 2021, and ending June 29, 2024. The Nancy & David Wolf Holocaust & Humanity Center has been an early and steadfast supporter of the creation of the Holocaust and Genocide Memorial and Education Commission.
“I commend Governor DeWine for his unwavering commitment to Holocaust education,” Weiss said. “I am honored to serve on the Holocaust and Genocide Memorial and Education Commission alongside my esteemed colleagues. I look forward to ensuring that every Ohioan learns from the lessons of one of the darkest chapters of human history.”
The Holocaust & Humanity Center is strategically positioned to lead on Holocaust and genocide education in the state.
“The Holocaust & Humanity Center is an unparalleled leader in Ohio and beyond in educating, training, and commemorating the Holocaust, especially at a time when both knowledge of the Shoah and misappropriation of it are at a crisis point,” said Howie Beigelman, executive director of Ohio Jewish Communities. “Their vision helped to establish the Commission and they will no doubt be one of the key partners with the Commission in this critical work.”
The Center reaches more than 200,000 individuals every year through museum visits, hundreds of digital programs, educational trainings, virtual tours, and student activities.
In the past year, the Center has expanded its offering for schools and educators, in addition to adding a new virtual intelligence exhibit to its award-winning museum at historic Union Terminal in Cincinnati. The exhibit, Dimensions in Testimony, utilizes specialized recording and display technologies and next-generation natural language processing to allow visitors to ask two-dimensional displays of Holocaust survivors questions and receive responses in real time.
The state commission will be comprised of two appointed members from the majority and minority parties from both the Ohio Senate and House of Representatives, eight appointed members by the Governor, the Superintendent of Public Instruction, the Chancellor of Higher Education and the Director of Veterans Services.
In early December, the Senate unanimously passed Senate Bill 372, sponsored by State Senator Michael Rulli (R-Salem), creating the Holocaust and Genocide Memorial and Education Commission to help cultivate knowledge and understanding of one of the most tragic occurrences in the world’s history.
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ABOUT THE NANCY & DAVID WOLF HOLOCAUST & HUMANITY CENTER
The Nancy & David Wolf Holocaust & Humanity Center exists to ensure the lessons of the Holocaust inspire action today. Located at Cincinnati’s historic Union Terminal, HHC educates more than 200,000 community members through its educational initiatives, innovative digital and in-person programs, virtual tours and partnerships. For more information, visit WWW.HOLOCAUSTANDHUMANITY.ORG.
