App State’s Center for Judaic, Holocaust, and Peace Studies holds 23rd Annual Rosen Symposium July 10–16

BOONE, N.C. — The Appalachian State University Center for Judaic, Holocaust, and Peace Studies (CJHPS) will host the 23rd Annual Martin and Doris Rosen Symposium from July 10–16 at Appalachian State’s Boone campus. The event is supported by the Claims Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany, the Martin and Doris Rosen Symposium Endowment and the local Jewish community.

For over two decades, the Rosen Symposium has brought educators from across the country together to provide lessons, materials, resources and best practices for teaching about the Holocaust. Participants will learn from renowned scholars of the Holocaust through workshops, lectures and discussions. This year’s theme is “Rescue during the Holocaust: The Power of Courage.” Programming will explore exciting and emotional stories of rescue during the Holocaust to better understand the dire situation of European Jews leading up to, during and after the Holocaust.

In addition to the teaching workshops for registered attendees, the symposium will feature a variety of free, hybrid events that are open to the public. These events include two keynote lectures to be held in the Reich College of Education (RCOE) room 124 and via Zoom:

• Rabbi Dr. Michael Berenbaum, the director of the Sigi Ziering Institute and professor at American Jewish University in Los Angeles, CA, will deliver the first keynote lecture, titled “Jan Karski: The Man and His Mission,” on Sunday, July 13, at 7 p.m.

• Mark Weitzman, the chief operating officer of the World Jewish Restitution Organization and lead author of the United Nations’ working definition of antisemitism, will deliver the second keynote lecture, “On Antisemitism in America,” on Tuesday, July 15, at 7 p.m.

Another highlight of the symposium is an opportunity for the public to meet and learn from survivors and second-generation survivors of World War II and the Holocaust. The following events will be held in RCOE room 124 and via Zoom:

• On Saturday, July 12, at 10:45 a.m., survivor Shelly Weiner and her daughter, Julie Weiner Wanderman, will tell their stories.

• On Sunday, July 13, at 9 a.m., survivor Dr. Zohara Boyd will share how she learned to live beyond the terror of the Holocaust, and Dr. Peter Petschauer will share how he came to grips with his father’s role as an SS officer in World War II. 

• On Monday, July 14, second-generation survivor Martin Herskovitz will present “Accessing Holocaust Memory via the Creative Process” at 1:30 p.m. His presentation will explore how traditional modes of Holocaust education fail to address the need for processing trauma as one learns about the Holocaust, and how developing a personal narrative of Holocaust memory uses the creative process to provide alternative methods for living with a Holocaust narrative.

To learn more and to view the full schedule, visit https://holocaust.appstate.edu/symposiums/2025-symposium.

Following the conclusion of the Rosen Symposium, CJHPS invites the public to attend “New Insights on the Holocaust,” a free, online conference on July 16 and 17. This international conference will highlight recent evidence about religious-led rescues during the Holocaust. For details, visit holocaust.appstate.edu/events/conferences/new-insights-holocaust.