In an effort to more permanently include the Armenian Genocide and other 20th century genocides into the Pasadena high school curriculum, The Genocide Education Project (GenEd) provided a full-day professional training workshop for Pasadena high school history teachers, according to The Armenian Reporter.
Led by GenEd's Education Specialist, Sara Cohan, the comprehensive workshop covered a range of topics related to genocide, including the California state requirements on Armenian Genocide instruction, the genesis and meaning of the term, common conditions leading to genocide, and the "eight stages of genocide."
The basic history of the Armenian Genocide was provided, and teachers were introduced to a variety of resources to use in class, including GenEd-developed lesson plans, "Human Rights and Genocide: A Case Study of the First Modern Genocide of the 20th Century," "Nicole's Journey," an online, interactive course, "The Armenian Journey: From Despair to Hope in Rhode Island," a documentary video and classroom study guide produced by GenEd.
Guest Speaker, Lorna Touryan Miller, spoke about her extensive work documenting the oral histories of Armenian Genocide survivors and survivors of the genocide in Rwanda. Herself a daughter of genocide survivors, Miller first recorded her father's story of survival, which spurred her and her husband, Donald Miller, to continue recording the oral histories of other genocide survivors. They are currently editing a new book titled, Survivor Voices: From Ottoman Turkey to Rwanda. ANCA-Pasadena initiated and organized the workshop, and secured funding from Saint Sarkis Armenian Apostolic Church, the Armenian Cultural Foundation, the Armenian Youth Federation Juniors, the Armenian General Athletic Union and Scouts (Homenetmen), PUSD and California State Senator Carol Liu.
The Genocide Education Project is a nonprofit, tax-exempt organization that assists educators in teaching about human rights and genocide, particularly the Armenian Genocide, by developing and distributing instructional materials, providing access to teaching resources and organizing educational workshops.
