Jewish Foundation for the Righteous welcomes Alfred Lerner Fellows
Dayna Hagewood from John Adams Middle School in Edison; Gabrielle O’Connor from Linden High School in Linden; Michaela Lubeski from Robert L. Horbelt Intermediate School and Jill Spain from Russell O. Brackman Middle School, both in Barnegat; and Carol Burtnick and Kathleen Godlesky, both from Cedar Drive Middle School in Colts Neck, were among the 24-2026 Alfred Lerner Fellows selected by the West Orange-based Jewish Foundation for the Righteous. The group includes middle and high school teachers and Holocaust center staff from nine states and Poland.
The group participated in the JFR’s Summer Institute for Teachers, an intensive five-day course, delving into the history of the Holocaust and discussing new teaching techniques for introducing the subject of the Holocaust into their classrooms.
The conference, held at the Hilton Newark Airport, opened with a lecture on the history of anti-Judaism and antisemitism, and ended with a lecture on contemporary antisemitism.
Fellows must be English or social studies teachers at the middle or high school level, have taught for at least five years, be at least five years from retirement, and teach about the Holocaust in their classroom.
“The three primary goals for the JFR’s Summer Institute are to provide teachers with a graduate-level course on antisemitism and the Holocaust, to empower educators to develop pedagogical connections with other teachers, and to equip these teachers with additional resources to bring back to their classrooms,” JFR’s executive vice president, Stanlee Stahl, said.
The nationally acclaimed fellowship program is named in memory of Alfred Lerner, the founding chairman and chief executive officer of MBNA Corporation, who died in 2002. He was a long-time advisor and supporter of JFR programs and activities and had a deep commitment to the group’s work, especially in the field of Holocaust education. For more information, go to www.jfr.org.