Keene State College Announces New Holocaust and Genocide Studies Major
KEENE, N.H. 2/16/09 - Keene State College is pleased to announce a new baccalaureate degree in Holocaust and Genocide Studies. The interdisciplinary undergraduate Holocaust and Genocide Studies major is currently accepting students for the 2009-10 academic year.
The Holocaust and Genocide Studies curriculum combines historical study with an interdisciplinary exploration of both the Holocaust and other genocidal events. The major incorporates film, literature, philosophy, psychology, sociology, religious studies, women’s studies, and other offerings. With an understanding of such issues as prejudice, discrimination, and racism, students master the skills needed to analyze contemporary political situations, think critically about ethical responsibility, and respond to injustice.
“These skills are at the heart of a liberal arts education,” said Cohen Center Director Dr. Henry Knight. “In a world still tormented by mass murder, studying the Holocaust offers an analytical framework that can help us to understand ongoing global genocide.”
Program graduates will be prepared to support social studies and history curriculum development, and to pursue careers in social and governmental service. The major also prepares students for graduate studies in history as well as Holocaust and genocide studies, and for other post-graduate work, such as law.
The Cohen Center for Holocaust Studies, recognized as a “center of excellence” by the Jewish Foundation for the Righteous, has an extensive collection of print and media resources and holds a biennial residential summer institute for educators. One of the nation’s oldest Holocaust resource centers, it is a nonsectarian organization dedicated to teaching the lessons of the Holocaust. It fulfills founder Dr. Charles Hildebrandt’s charge, “to remember…and to teach,” through annual community programming and educational outreach activities. For more information about the Holocaust and Genocide Studies major, or to see a schedule of workshops, in-service training, classroom presentations, and individual curriculum consultations, visit www.keene.edu/cchs.
