Holocaust Center Director Will Speak at Yom HaShoah

KEENE, N.H. 4/10/02 Paul Vincent, the director of the Cohen Center for Holocaust Studies at Keene State College, will be the featured speaker at this years Hildebrandt Holocaust Awards Ceremony. Vincent, associate professor of Holocaust Studies at KSC, will speak about Remembering Jewish Resistance. The awards will be held on Monday, April 15, beginning at 7 p.m., in the Alumni Recital Hall of the Redfern Arts Center on Brickyard Pond.

The Hildebrandt Awards, a Keene State event that remembers the Holocaust by way of student and community art and scholarship, is scheduled during the week of Yom HaShoah, an international remembrance of the Holocaust, observed this year on April 9.

This will the fifth year that Keene State has awarded prizes for art pieces that explore the meaning of the Holocaust. The awards are named for Charles Hildebrandt, professor emeritus of sociology at KSC who retired in 1998. Hildebrandt, who will present the awards, founded KSCs Center for Holocaust Studies in 1983 and served as its first director.

Nine entries in this years competition, including dance and musical pieces, graphic art, sculpture, poetry, video, and an essay will be displayed or presented for the public. The event is free and open to the public.

The presenters, who include Keene middle and high school students, Keene State students, and Keene community members, are:

Musical piece: Logan Gabriel, performed by Ashley Rand and Allissa Szymcik (all KSC)

Poetry: Patricia Robinson (community)

Sculpture: Lilly Goldberg (KSC)

Video: Heather Murphy and Karen Boyer (Keene High School)

Essay: Eileen Driscoll (KSC)

Dance: Samantha L. Hounsell, (KSC) performed by Hounsell with Jamie Wenger

Graphic arts piece: Louis McDavid (KSC)

Poetry: Stephanie Hastings (Keene High School)

Musical piece: Andreas Lawrence (KSC)

The winning entry will receive $500. Two entries from Keene State students will receive honorable mention, worth $150. Prizes of $100 will go to the best high school and community entries.

Hosting the evenings program will be Robert Golden, vice president for academic affairs at KSC. These awards are meant not only to honor Charles Hildebrandt, the founder of the Center for Holocaust Studies, said Golden, but to demonstrate the depth of Keene States commitment to educating our students and local community members about the realities of the Holocaust.

For more information, contact Susan Herman, professor of management, at 603-358-2623.