
In 1994, New Jersey became the first U.S. state to mandate Holocaust and genocide education in schools. The degree to which schools have carried out the requirement, and their curricula's effectiveness, have varied greatly and in some cases been shown to be lacking.
In 2022, Jewish Federation in the Heart of New Jersey was instrumental in advocating for a bill aimed at assessing the landscape in order to begin a process of supporting educators in improving accountability, consistency, and impact of Holocaust education across the state.
In 2023, Governor Murphy signed a law requiring a survey on the implementation of this mandate, conducted by the NJ Department of Education and the NJ Commission on Holocaust Education. This was the first step in ensuring the mandate is being successfully met and clarifying requirements. The survey, completed by 596 of 678 local educational agencies, found that 99.6% of reporting districts comply with the mandate in some fashion, with two respondents not yet implementing the curriculum.
Findings:
- Holocaust education is taught across all grades, with significant variation in methods and resources:
- Elementary Grades: Focus on themes like diversity, respect, and anti-bullying through integrated curricula
- Middle School: More explicit instruction on discrimination, human rights, and genocide
- High School: Emphasis on historical events, genocide studies, and advanced topics
- Barriers include time constraints (41%), curriculum alignment (33%), and financial/resource limitations
Resources and Educators:
- Primary resources: NJ Commissionon on Holocaust Education's materials, textbooks, and national Holocaust organization
- Approximately 576 educators have specialized certifications
Recommendations:
- Increase awareness of the Commission’s offerings and resources
- Provide professional development tailored to educators’ needs
- Enhance resources for diverse learning styles and languages
- Recognize and share exemplary district practices
Next Steps:
- The Commission aims to clarify mandate requirements, expand professional development, and collaborate with schools to strengthen educational programming.
Schools and districts across the heart of New Jersey's Monmouth and Middlesex counties are encouraged to make full use of resources available through the NJ Commission on Holocaust Education and Jewish Federation's CARMA (Center to Combat Antisemitism and Reinforce Multicutural Acceptance), as well as through Chhange (Center for Holocasut, Human Rights, and Genocide Education) located at Brookdale Community College.
Students who feel they have been subjected to or involved in antisemitism in schools may seek support through Jewish Federation's CARMA Helpline.