June 6, 2023, San Francisco—The Jewish Family and Children’s Services (JFCS) Holocaust Center has announced the public phase of a $45 million capital campaign to build a new, state-of-the-art Holocaust Center, library, and archive.   The JFCS Holocaust Center is widely recognized statewide, nationally, and internationally as a leader in Holocaust and genocide education. The organization Read More

by Andrew Roth, Project Archivist Just in time for Passover, the JFCS Holocaust Center recently received a beautiful, three-tiered Seder plate as a donation from 98-year-old Holocaust survivor Hans Adler. This striking Seder plate not only has a fascinating history but also imparts an often-overlooked aspect of the Jewish refugee experience: the desire to hold Read More

Why is April Genocide Awareness Month? April is recognized as Genocide Awareness Month due to the occurrence of numerous significant dates in the history of genocide within this month. During this month, we commemorate four genocides, raise awareness about all genocide, and explore how to recognize and interrupt the patterns. We Remember – Important Historical Read More

“The experience I gained will be forever etched in my heart. This inspires me to teach my students about the Holocaust.” —Teacher participant Holocaust education is antisemitism education. On Sunday, January 28, California educators from across the state convened at the California Teachers Collaborative for Holocaust and Genocide Education’s Winter Institute, led by the JFCS Read More

“I don’t want people to forget.”   That is what Georgie, a middle school student in San Mateo, found herself thinking when she was asked to explore topics for a two-year-learning project at school. As her friends explored starting a catering business or learning how to train pets, Georgie wondered how she could share about a Read More

by Dr. Andrea Struve With Thanksgiving fast approaching, many of us will be giving thanks for our families, friends, and communities. However, it’s crucial to acknowledge the complex history of Thanksgiving, rooted in both the pursuit of religious freedom through colonial settlement and harmful actions toward Native peoples. Reflecting on this history enables us to Read More

by Andrew Roth, Archivist at the JFCS Holocaust Center’s Tauber Library and Archives On November 9–10, 1938, Nazi leaders unleashed a series of pogroms against the Jewish population in Germany and recently incorporated territories. This event came to be called Kristallnacht (The Night of Broken Glass) because of the shattered glass that littered the streets after the Read More

The JFCS Holocaust Center is steadfast in our mission to combat antisemitism through education. As we witness the rampant spread of misinformation, we offer a pillar of support and guidance for educators, parents, students, and community members who are wondering how best to respond. Read on for a range of educational resources, expert guidance and Read More

George didn’t think he had a story to tell. His daughter, Elizabeth, convinced him otherwise. “I didn’t have to go to a concentration camp. I didn’t have to hide in someone’s closet. I was hidden in plain view. But my daughter said, You have a story. And you have to tell it.” – George George Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE September 14, 2023—Governor Newsom has signed and passed California’s 2023-24 budget, which includes $1.5 million in renewed funding for the California Teachers Collaborative for Holocaust and Genocide Education. The Collaborative is developing a robust series of new, standards-aligned lessons and teacher training initiatives to educate 6 – 12th graders about what happens Read More

by Angelique Silva, YouthFirst Summer Intern In 1884, Germany (a minor power in Africa at the time) ruled over south-west Africa. After Germany had taken over, the Herero and Nama grew sick of the colonization and oppression, and in January 1904, decided to start a rebellion. With their revolt, Germany began a massacre targeting the Read More

Applications for the second annual California Teachers Collaborative Summer Institute are now open! Apply today. FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE June 29, 2023—This week, the California Teachers Collaborative for Holocaust and Genocide Education held the State’s first ever Summer Institute for teachers at the USC Shoah Foundation in Los Angeles. The California Teachers Collaborative is the first Read More

The Corruption and Reclaiming of the Jewish Star By Dr. Yedida Kanfer, Director of Collections and Programming  This Jewish American Heritage Month, we consider how the meaning of the Jewish Star has changed over time. Consider the blue and gold logo of the Golden State Warriors, with the Golden Gate Bridge in its center, or Read More

On March 23, 2023, the four recipients of the Diller Educator Awards and the recipient of the Diller Prize for Distinguished Lifetime Achievement were announced. The recipient of the Experiential and Communal Diller Educator Award is Morgan Blum Schneider, Director of the Jewish Family and Children’s Services (JFCS) Holocaust Center, who has been an instrumental Read More

The following article is an excerpt from forward.com, written by Yedida S. Kanfer, PhD; Director of Collections and Programming at the JFCS Holocaust Center Several years ago, a Holocaust survivor came to see me at the JFCS Holocaust Center Tauber Library and Archives. He had left his hometown of Frankenwinheim, Germany as a child, several Read More

International Holocaust Remembrance Day, testimony with George Elbaum, JFCS William J Lowenberg Speakers Bureau Presented in partnership with the American Jewish Committee, Anti-Defamation League, and the Consulates of Germany, Israel and Luxembourg. This program will include an introduction by California Lieutenant Governor Eleni Kounalakis and testimony with George Elbaum. Watch the recording here:

Holocaust and genocide education is mandated in the state of California, but many educators lack the resources they need to effectively teach this sensitive and difficult subject. With antisemitism at its highest levels in recent history, many are wondering how to correct course.   This November, the JFCS Holocaust Center held its inaugural symposium of the Read More

November 6-7, 2022, San Francisco—This weekend, the newly formed California Collaborative for Holocaust and Genocide Education will gather at The Clancy, Autograph Collection for its November Symposium, led by the Jewish Family and Children’s Services (JFCS) Holocaust Center in San Francisco. The California Collaborative—established with support from a $1.9 Million grant from the Marin County Office of Education and the State of California—is a first-of-its-kind statewide network that connects educators, genocide survivors, and community leaders in Holocaust and genocide education.

At this moment we bear the weight of history. Governor Gavin Newsom today announced the members of his Governor’s Council for Holocaust and Genocide Education, which includes top experts, legislators, and leaders of our State. The Council is co-chaired by JFCS’ Executive Director, Dr. Anita Friedman, and is designed to expand education about antisemitism and bigotry to every Read More

Last week, the California Assembly and Senate released their joint budget agreement, a critical step in the State’s annual budget approval process. It includes two of our Jewish community’s most important priorities—Holocaust and genocide education and caring for vulnerable survivors. Anita Friedman, JFCS’ Executive Director, says, “The voice of California’s Jewish Community has been heard. Read More

Jules, Pell University Fellow, 2021-22 I was catching up with my close friend Caroline over the phone in late January, “There were swastikas on the bench in front of my house”, my friend said,  “and then more were drawn around my block. I didn’t know what to do at first, so I took photos, called Read More

Jewish Family and Children’s Services Holocaust Center has established the California Collaborative for Holocaust and Genocide Education, with support from a $1.9 Million grant from the Marin County Office of Education and the State of California. The California Collaborative, a first-of-its-kind statewide network, will connect educators, genocide survivors, and community leaders in order to support Read More

During the pandemic, the JFCS Holocaust Center never waned from its mission to remember, research, document, and educate about the Holocaust. In fact, it has increased accessibility and access to students, educators, and the community through adapting its offerings. From pivoting the William J. Lowenberg Speakers Bureau into virtual settings to addressing the increase in Read More

By Zoe Stricker, a participant in the JFCS Holocaust Center’s Conversation Circle 2020 It has never been lost on me that my generation is one of the last to be in contact with survivors of the Holocaust, so when I learned about the JFCS Holocaust Center’s Conversation Circle, I was eager to partake. I was so curious to hear from a survivor about how they navigated Read More

In an unprecedented public-private partnership, the JFCS Holocaust Center will be partnering with the State of California to respond to rising acts of antisemitism and hate. By combining private donations with public money, the JFCS Holocaust Center will lead an important initiative to expand Holocaust and genocide education across our state. Over recent months, JFCS Read More

Our community is inspired by the more than 1,000 students, educators, and parents from all over the Bay Area who took the time to attend a Confronting Antisemitism workshop this past academic year. Attendees grappled with the term “antisemitism” and its profound impact throughout history and in everyday life.  Students and their parents gathered together Read More

Two years ago, Henry was a student in the JFCS Holocaust Center’s Manovill Fellowship Program. Today, Henry is a student at a university in Menton, France. When he arrived at his French university, Henry was shocked by the acts of antisemitism he witnessed around him and the lack of Holocaust education opportunities for students. He reached Read More

By Shayna Dollinger, Pell University Fellow at the JFCS Holocaust Center Coffee is one of the oldest luxuries and strongest addictions. From Costa Rica to Tanzania and all across the globe, coffee tells stories. But what stories does coffee tell about one of the darkest periods in Jewish history? Coffee first arrived in Europe in Read More

Thursday, February 4th 5:00 – 6:30pm (PST)   Lori E. Frugoli, District Attorney, Marin County​ Morgan Blum Schneider, Director, JFCS Holocaust Center​ Susan Leider, Senior Rabbi, Congregation Kol Shofar​ Seth Brysk, Regional Director, ADL Patrice O’Neill, Not in Our Town Noah Griffin, Local resident, historian, leader for changing the name of the Dixie School District Representatives Read More

In the midst of the pandemic, Dr. Carl Grunfeld, member of the JFCS Board of Directors, reached out the JFCS Holocaust Center to donate an important piece of his family history. The passport belonged to Otto Schwarz, Carl’s uncle, who was born in Viersen, Germany in 1904. When Kristallnacht unfolded, Otto raced home and jumped over a wall Read More

In January 2020, I was only a month away from my Bar Mitzvah. On winter break, my family and I went to Jamestown, California in the Gold Country on the way back from a trip to the mountains and a stop to visit the Gold Rush town of Columbia. We went into an old antique Read More

How Holocaust Education at the JFCS Holocaust Center is Empowering the Next Generation As the movement against racism and injustice builds in our country and around the world, the JFCS Holocaust Center continues our commitment to fighting discrimination, hatred, and antisemitism. Watch this video, featuring our Manovill Fellows, to see how the next generation is Read More

Jewish Family and Children’s Services has issued the following statement in coalition with the San Francisco Interfaith Council and our network of interfaith organizations   As leaders of diverse faith-based traditions we understand human life to be the greatest and most sacred gift endowed by our Creator. Inherent in that gift is the inalienable right Read More

  Students (grades 7-12) and educators are invited to our 18th Annual Day of Learning at Galileo High School on March 8, 2020! More than 700 students (grades 7-12) and educators from public and private schools throughout California will choose from 18 different workshops and hear survivor testimony from the Holocaust or genocide.  The Day of Read More

Join us on Holocaust Remembrance Day 2020     George Elbaum was 1 year old living in Warsaw when Germany invaded Poland in September 1939. His family lived in what became the Warsaw Ghetto, in cramped quarters and on starvation rations for three years. Of his family of 12, only George and his mother survived. Read More