Press release The Genocide Education Project August, 15 2006 Contact: Sara Cohan (sarac@genocideeducation.org) SAN FRANCISCO, CA -- The Genocide Education Project is pleased to announce the first recipient of the Aharonian Award for excellence in the teaching of the Armenian Genocide, Mr. Ronald Levitsky of Northfield, Illinois. Mr. Levitsky is an extremely accomplished educator who has received countless awards for ground-breaking work in the classroom and serves on various local and national educational committees. The 2006 Aharonian Award is the first time that a national award has been offered to secondary level educators who teach about the Armenian Genocide. "We know that teachers all over the country are teaching about the Armenian Genocide in unique and interesting ways," stated Raffi Momjian, Executive Director of The Genocide Education Project. "Now we have a chance to recognize and reward the important work educators are doing on the subject." Mr. Levitsky's curriculum project was based on an action alert issued by the Armenian National Committee of America, suggesting people submit a new design for a postage stamp to the Citizen Stamp Advisory Committee. The postage stamp activity became a springboard for studying the Armenian Genocide as well as America's response to it. Levitsky noted, "Because adolescents have a sense of justice and sensitivity to cruelty, students need to believe that, in the midst of genocide, people can act affirmatively." The lesson includes background readings on the Armenian Genocide as well as information on America's response to the Genocide, which is culled from the research of Peter Balakian and Merill Peterson. Students not only learn the details of the history of the Armenian Genocide but they are also required to write journal entries examining a variety of related topics from "why people bully" to exploring ways to stop genocide. Finally, designing a stamp allows students to express the ideas and issues they have learned about in an artistic manner. Levitsky's approach ensures his students will learn both the history of the Armenian Genocide and the responsibility of all people to respond to genocide in more effective way. The Aharonian Award was inspired by Avedis Aharonian, a prolific Armenian writer, public servant, and one of the founders of the first independent Armenian Republic in 1918. Aharonian wrote, "If evil of this magnitude can be ignored, if our own children forget, then we deserve oblivion and earn the world's scorn." By sponsoring an award in his name, The Genocide Education Project hopes to inspire more U.S. educators to teach about the Armenian Genocide. Additional information about the Aharonian Award and the full criteria for submitting a lesson plan can be found on The Genocide Education Project's online resource library at www.TeachGenocide.org. Winners of the Aharonian Award receive teaching resources on the Armenian Genocide, a cash award, and the publication of their lesson plan on http://www.TeachGenocide.org. A set of resources is also provided to the award recipient's affiliated institution's library. ======== North American Human Rights Education listserv ======= Send mail intended for the list to < >. Archives of the list can be found at: http://www.hrea.org/lists/hr-education-na/ **You are welcome to reprint, copy, archive, quote or re-post this item, but please retain the original and listserv source.
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