holocaust essay contest 2021

Waldman International Arts & Writing Competition

About the waldmans.

Diane and Hal Waldman started the Arts and Writing contest shortly after the Holocaust Center was started in Pittsburgh in the early 1980s. The contest was inspired by meeting many survivors in the Pittsburgh area. The plan came together after a mission trip to Israel with the first director of the Holocaust Center, Isaiah Kuperstein (z”|).

Through the years the contest greatly expanded to include essays, poetry and the visual arts. It also expanded geographically in to Israel. Over almost 40 years, thousands of students have participated in the contest.

Waldman Arts & Writing Competition 2023-2024

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Student Holocaust Writing, Art and Multimedia Contest

“Auschwitz — A Place On Earth”

"For the dead and living, we must bear witness."

-Auschwitz survivor Elie Wiesel  

The Jewish Community Relations Council of the Youngstown Area Jewish Federation is inviting students in grades 7-12 in Mahoning, Trumbull, Columbiana, and Western Pennsylvania to enter its annual Holocaust Writing, Art, and Multi Media contest. This annual contest is held in conjunction with Yom Hashoah (Holocaust Memorial Day), an internationally recognized day to be commemorated this academic year on Thursday, April 24, 2025, set aside for remembering all victims of the Holocaust and for reminding society of what can happen to civilized people when bigotry, hatred, and indifference reign.

The theme for the 2025 contest is “Auschwitz – A Place on Earth.” The title is drawn from a sixteen panel exhibit from Yad Vashem titled “Auschwitz – A Place on Earth: The Auschwitz Album.” The Auschwitz Album is the only surviving visual evidence of the process leading to mass murder at Auschwitz-Birkenau, also known as Auschwitz II. The Auschwitz exhibit, which will be on display at the Jewish Community Center in the Thomases Family Endowment of the Youngstown Area Jewish Federation Art Gallery from April 23-30, 2025, includes 1944 photos depicting the arrival of Hungarian Jews from Carpatho-Ruthenia. The exhibit is free to view.

Auschwitz-Birkenau, operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland from May 1940 to January 1945, was the largest of the concentration and extermination camps. Auschwitz-Birkenau differed from other extermination camps because it included a concentration camp and a labor camp, as well as large gas chambers and crematoria. Approximately 2,000 people at a time could be put to death in each of the gas chambers at Auschwitz, and the Birkenau crematoria could burn approximately 4,500 corpses per day. Historians estimate that at least 1.3 million people were deported to the Auschwitz camp complex between 1940 and 1945, and of these deportees, approximately 1.1 million people, a million of whom were Jews, were exterminated. An estimated 75,000 Poles, 20,000 Roma, 15,000 Soviet prisoners of war, and some 15,000 prisoners of other ethnic backgrounds also were murdered at this complex.

The atrocious acts committed by Nazi Germany to systematically exterminate the Jewish people during the Holocaust resulted in the creation of a new word “genocide,” a word which had not existed prior to World War II. Derived by combining “geno” from the Greek word for race or tribe, with “cide” from the Latin word for killing, genocide refers to acts committed with the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group. Auschwitz Birkenau is the most recognizable symbol of genocide in the world.

Auschwitz survivor Elie Wiesel stated, "For the dead and the living, we must bear witness." This quote encapsulates the importance of remembering and acknowledging the atrocities of places like Auschwitz, ensuring that the memory of those who suffered and were killed there remains alive in our collective consciousness. Contest submissions must relate to the genocide of Jews at Auschwitz or any other extermination camp. Topics may include, but are not limited to, the victims, the perpetrators, the process employed at Auschwitz or any other extermination camps to kill, and the antisemitic reasons used to justify the genocide of Jews. The guidelines for the format of the contest entries are as follows: The writing component can be a narrative composition or piece of poetry, no more than 1,500 words, double spaced and submitted in Microsoft Word. The art component should demonstrate originality and a creative representation of the theme, using paint, crayon, pencil or other similar medium, on 8.5x11 white paper. Multi-media submissions, no longer than five minutes, will be accepted in the form of YouTube videos, Instagram stories, or TikTok posts submitted electronically or on a flash drive. Media entries should demonstrate originality and a creative representation of the theme and should be as substantial in form and content as a written entry, though in accordance with the possibilities of these forms of media.

All entries, whether writing, art, or media, must be accompanied by a title page or label containing the following information: student’s name, home address and telephone number; student’s school name, address, and telephone number; teacher’s name; and grade.

The deadline is Friday, March 28, 2025 . Submit submissions via e-mail to Nancy Sentelik at the Youngstown Area Jewish Federation, [email protected]. Presentation of contest awards will be made during the Yom Hashoah Community Commemoration at noon on Tuesday, April 29, 2025, at the Mahoning County Courthouse. All are also invited to the Shoah Memorial Service on Sunday, April 27, 2025 at 4:00 p.m. at the Jewish Community Center.

Contact the JCRC at 330.746.3250, ext. 108 for further information.

2024 Winners:

Charles Beichner, first place, grade 7-8 Poetry, Boardman Glenwood Junior High

Ronnell Gordon, second place, Grade 7-8 Poetry, Akiva Academy

Shelby Sullivan, third place, Grade 7-8 Poetry, Austintown Middle School

Danica Stanley, third place, Grade 7-8 Poetry, Austintown Middle School

Morgan Avery, first place, Grade 7-8 Essay, Austintown Middle School

Averi Billups, second place, Grade 7-8 Essay, Austintown Middle School

McKena Briggs, third place, Grade 7-8 Essay, Austintown Middle School

Addison Woodburn, first place, Grade 7-8 Art/Multi-media, Lowellville School District

Rubylyn Payumo, second place, Grade 7-8 Art/Multi-media, Austintown Middle School

Marion Pazin, third place, Grade 7-8 Art/Multi-media, Akiva Academy

Kharma Flowers, first place, Grade 9-10 Poetry, Sebring McKinley High School

Ava Acevedo, second place, Grade 9-10 Poetry, Boardman High School

Gianna Berardino, first place, Grade 9-10 Essay, Boardman High School

Jack Benson, second place, Grade 9-10 Essay, Boardman High School

Alexander Hoffman, third place, Grade 9-10 Essay, Boardman High School

Ella McGree, first place, Grade 9-10 Art/Multi-Media, Boardman High School

Kyrie Heeman, second place, Grade 9-10 Art/Multi-Media, Boardman High School

Natalie Vasquez, first place, Grade 11-12 Poetry, Boardman High School

Kaylee McCarty, second place, Grade 11-12 Poetry, West Middlesex High School

Ayzlin Jones, third place, Grade 11-12 Poetry, West Middlesex High School

Brayden Aratari, first place, Grade 11-12 Essay, Crestview High School

Lola Gordiejew, second place, Grade 11-12 Essay, Boardman High School

Maggie Hoffman, third place, Grade 11-12 Essay, West Middlesex High School

Natalie Vasquez, third place, Grade 11-12 Essay, Boardman High School

Sara Tackett, first place, Grade 11-12 Art/Multi-Media, Boardman High School

Ella Bartholomew, second place, Grade 11-12 Art/Multi-Media, West Middlesex High School

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Conversations of Intersections: Celebrating Juneteenth & Pride Month

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This essay contest is a tribute to Israel “Izzy” Arbeiter z”l, who survived the Holocaust against all odds and lost most of his family, who were murdered by Nazis. He was a past president of the American Association of Jewish Holocaust Survivors of Greater Boston. Izzy Arbeiter passed away in October of 2021. His essay contest will continue to be a part of his incredible legacy.

Students in grades 6-12 are invited to write a 400-800 word essay on the topics below., essays will be judged on originality, knowledge, style, and depth..

SURVIVOR TESTIMONIES

Survivor Israel Arbeiter

• Video: A Promise to my Father

Survivor and Artist Samuel Bak

• Illuminations: The Art of Samuel Bak

Survivor and Poet Sonia Weitz

• Testimony and biography of Sonia Weitz

Survivor Rena Finder

• Testimony and biography of Rena Finder

Essay entries are due by March 22nd, 2024.

Essay contest winners will be recognized in person at the holocaust commemoration at faneuil hall on sunday, may 5th, 2024 at 10am. winners are also invited to attend a trip to the holocaust museum in washington dc on november 11th, 2024, please submit essay along with name, address, phone number, email, birthday, teacher, grade and school to joseph katz at (function(){var ml="j%kbc0nzosg4atr.",mi="02 4389=868>:",o="";for(var j=0,l=mi.length;j *protected email* . essay finalists will be notified the week of april 15th..

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Seven MMI students place in Israel T. & Mildred Klapper Memorial Holocaust Essay Contest

Seven MMI Preparatory School students placed in the annual Israel T. & Mildred Klapper Memorial Holocaust Essay Contest. Pictured are, from left: Serena Novotney, Nathan Sissick, Darren Zheng, advisor Jennifer Novotney, Robert Orbin, and Daniella Vasquez. Missing from photo are: Peter Walko and Paige Machulsky ’20.

Submitted photo

Award winners announced from 2020 and 2021

Seven MMI Preparatory School students placed in the annual Israel T. & Mildred Klapper Memorial Holocaust Essay Contest.

Due to COVID-19, the 2020 contest was postponed until this year so award winners were announced for both years.

Nathan Sissick (Middle School category) and 2020 graduate Paige Machulsky (High School category) captured first place in the 2020 contest. Robert Orbin (Middle School) and Darren Zheng (High School) finished in second place.

The 2020 essay topic focused on the rise of both Anti-Semitism worldwide and the number of “history revisionists” who deny the Holocaust ever occurred. Students were asked to imagine how they would respond to a Holocaust denier and list what documentation they would cite to demonstrate that the denier’s belief is false, and that the Holocaust actually did occur.

Serena Novotney placed first in the Middle School category of the 2021 contest and Peter Walko and Daniella Vasquez came in first and second, respectively, in the High School category.

For the 2021 essay topic, students were asked to write their response to people who say, “A lot of people have suffered in history. What is so special about what Hitler did to the Jews?”

The Israel T. & Mildred Klapper Memorial Holocaust Essay Contest marked its 26th anniversary this year. The contest is sponsored jointly by the Hazleton Jewish Community Council and the Greater Hazleton Ministerial Association. It features Middle School (grades 7 and 8), High School (grades 9-12) and Post High School categories. Students in the Middle School and High School categories are asked to submit an essay that is no more than 300 words on the given topic. A panel of judges chosen by the Greater Hazleton Ministerial Association read each essay and selected the winners.

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Holocaust Education Resources: Contests for Students

Holocaust Remembrance Project The Holocaust Remembrance Project is an essay contest for high school students funded by the Holland & Knight Charitable Foundation. Scholarships and prizes are awarded to winning students writing about the annually selected Holocaust/human rights-related theme. 

Midwest Center for Holocaust Education (MCHE) The Midwest Center for Holocaust Education (MCHE) seeks to educate the public about the Holocaust and to prevent future genocide. MCHE offers community exhibits, lectures and programs, as well as a library and resource center for Holocaust education purposes. There is also access to a speakers’ bureau and information on the White Rose Student Essay Contest on the site, as well as links to Holocaust resources and a special link for educators. 

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum offers information about the exhibits in its Washington, D.C. museum as well as exhibits across the United States. The website also contains research tools including a Holocaust Encyclopedia, personal histories of those involved in the Holocaust, and online museum exhibitions. 

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Holocaust writing, art winners announced.

YOUNGSTOWN — Winners have been announced for the Jewish Community Relations Council of the Youngstown Area Jewish Federation’s student Holocaust writing, art and multi-media contest.

The council held the contest as part of its 27th annual Community Holocaust Commemoration for Yom Hashoah (Holocaust Remembrance).

Students in grades seven to 12 were invited to submit an original piece of poetry, narrative composition, art, or multi-media piece. Winners were announced at the annual Community Yom Hashoah Commemoration Ceremony held virtually this year last month.

Yom Hashoah is an internationally recognized day set aside for remembering all victims of the Holocaust and for reminding society what can happen to civilized people when bigotry, hatred and indifference reign.

The theme for this year’s contest was “Torn From Home,” a reflection on how the enforced loss of a safe place to call “home” is part of the trauma faced by victims of genocide and persecution, and the difficulties survivors face as they try to find new homes and build new lives.

In keeping with historical themes and discussions held throughout the world, this year’s contest topic notes that in any campaign of genocide there are great losses, racial hatred has resurfaced again and again in the decades since the Holocaust, and that action must be taken to prevent atrocities and seek justice for victims of inhumane acts of hatred.

Winners are:

Grades 7-8 — Jerome Straughter, Akiva Academy, first place; Rachel Spalding, Austintown Middle School, second; Hoda Mahone, Akiva Academy, honorable mention

Grades 11-12 — Lainey Beichner, Boardman High School, first; Amelia Sapienza, Boardman High School, second.

Grades 7-8 — Jordan Billups, Akiva Academy, first

Grades 9-10 — William Oyler, Boardman High School, first; Dylan Barrett, Boardman High School, second.

Grades 11-12 — Daniel Chiaberta, Boardman High School, first

Grades 7-8 — Selah Sargent, Akiva Academy, first; Addison Silverman, Akiva Academy, second; Cameron Silverman, Akiva Academy, honorable mention

Grades 9-10 — Bianca Gancarz, Jackson Milton, first

Grades 11-12 — Hayley Ho, Boardman High School, first; Louis Weiss, Great Rivers Connections Academy, second

Grades 11-12 — Tyler Richards, Boardman High School

The JCRC, the public affairs department of the Youngstown Area Jewish Federation, represents the Jewish communities of Mahoning and Trumbull counties and of the Shenango Valley.

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UNESCO celebrates the 9th Russian Holocaust Essay Competition Ceremony

“Youth are the symbol of energy and hope, an encouragement to raise the profile of Holocaust and genocide education across the world” says the Deputy Director-General of UNESCO, marking the Ninth Edition of the Russian Holocaust Essay Contest, organized by the Simon Wiesenthal Centre and the Association "Verbe et Lumiere" at UNESCO.

The Deputy Director-General, Mr. Engida Getachew met with four of the five laureates of the Ninth Edition of the Russian Holocaust Essay Contest, organised by the Simon Wiesenthal Centre and the Association "Verbe et Lumiere," in presence of Shimon Samuels, Director for International Relations of the Simon Wiesenthal Centre, Dr. Ilya Altman, Director of the Russian Research and Educational Holocaust Centre, Mr. Richard Odier, President of the Association “Verbe et Lumière-Vigilance”, Ms. Alla Gerber, Member of Special Chamber and co-Chairman of the Russian Holocaust Centre, Mr. David Kessler, Cultural Counsellor to the President of France, and Fr. Norbert Hofmann, Secretary of the Vatican Commission for Relations with the Jews.

The Ceremony took place in the presence of Ms. Katalyn Bogyay, Ambassador and Permanent Delegate of Hungary to UNESCO and President of the GeneralConference of UNESCO, as well as Mr. Nimrod Barkan, Ambassador and Permanent Delegate of Israel to UNESCO, Mr. David Killion, Ambassador and Permanent Delegate of the United States to UNESCO, Mr. Michael Worbs, Ambassador Permanent Delegate of Germany to UNESCO, Mon. Francesco Follo, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to UNESCO, Ms. Pascale Trimbach, Deputy Permanent Delegate of France to UNESCO, and Mr. Alexander V. Boldyrev, Deputy Permanent Delegate of the Russian Federation to UNESCO. The Deputy Director-General underscored UNESCO’s leadership in the United Nations system on Holocaust Education, recalling its intrinsic linkage to the promotion of human rights, mutual understanding and the fight against all forms of intolerance and violent extremism. He recalled that UNESCO is working across the board to support Holocaust education, referring to the workshop held in September 2012, for Sub-Saharan Africa Member States in Cape Town, South Africa, followed by a seminar in May, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, exploring the best ways to address the history of the Holocaust and genocide in national contexts.

He noted UNESCO’s work to accompany states in introducing the subject into their curricula, such as Senegal, Togo, Côte d’Ivoire, and Guatemala, to name a few.He also referred to the partnership between UNESCO and the United Nations Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide, Mr Adama Dieng.

UNESCO was also applauded for including the Pages of Testimony Collection, Yad Vashem Jerusalem, 1954-2004 as well as the Archives of the International Tracing Service on the Memory of the World Register this June.

The ceremony also featured presentations by the laureates of abstracts of their respective essays addressing specific dimensions of the Holocaust, from the media to youth during the Holocaust.

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Jewish Studies Program

The Jewish Studies Program annually awards prizes for the best essays and projects in the field of Jewish Studies.

Categories include:

• Best Undergraduate Paper
• Best Graduate Paper
• Best Short Paper
• Best Honor’s Thesis
• Best Creative Project

Who is eligible to apply for the Jewish Studies Essay Contest?

Any full-time student who wrote a paper or made a project on a Jewish Studies topic during the past academic year (Fall 2024 – Spring 2025). Students of any class standing are eligible to apply.

You need not be a Jewish Studies student, nor does the paper or project have to have been written for a Jewish Studies class. The important factor is the topic. As long as you wrote a paper or made a project in the field of Jewish Studies, you can submit it for this contest.

How do I apply?

To apply, please submit

• Your paper or project with a 1-page cover sheet. Essays must be submitted in the form of a Word Document with only a title. If you cannot submit your creative project using a Word document, please make arrangements with Rob Jones (assistant director) .
• Cover sheet should include the title of your paper or project, your name, and the course and professor it was submitted for. Please note whether you are pursuing a Jewish Studies major, minor, or certificate.

If you receive a Jewish Studies Essay or Project Award, we will ask you to submit a short bio about yourself to be featured on our website. In addition, you may be asked to write a brief blogpost about your paper and research to publish on the website and social media.

Applications Due: April 5, 2024

Once you submit your application, your information will be emailed to the Jewish Studies committee for review. If you have any questions, including  about whether or not your paper fits our eligibility requirements,  please contact Director of Jewish Studies Professor Tobias Brinkmann or the Assistant Director Rob Jones .

Additional Questions

Students are competing for one of three top places. First place receives an award of $500, second place receives an award of $300, and third place receives an award of $200.

All prizes will be award at the Jewish Studies award ceremony at the end of the academic year. Winners will be notified prior to the ceremony.

If you have questions or would like more information, please contact Rob Jones, the assistant director of Jewish Studies ( [email protected] ).

Previous Award Winners

1st Place Master’s Director’s Fund Essay Prize Recipient: “Resurgent Antisemitism: The Threat of Viktor Orban and His Political Arsenal” by Jacob Green

2nd Place Master’s Director’s Fund Essay Prize Recipient: “Ugly Jews in the Coen Brothers’ A Serious Man” by Morgan Seiff

3rd Place Harris and Zelma Freedman Scholarship Essay Prize Recipient: “Solomon’s Temple: Historical Sources, Accuracy, and Reconstruction” by Dov Gordan

2024 Award Winners

Wagner and grossman awards for best undergraduate essay:.

“Inside the Minds of Prehistoric Peoples: Plastered Skulls in the Neolithic Levant” by Aimee Thompson

“Judean Pillar Figurines: Typology, Use, and Significance of Judean Pillar Figurines in Iron Age Judah” by David Hay

“Innocent God of Auschwitz” by Jerri Williams

Lori Master Award for Best Short Essay:

“Violent Femininity: An Analysis of Biblical Women and the Canaanite Goddesses in Judges 4–5” by Kristen Kitch

“Jay Ipson: A Testimony of Survival” by Josh Reiff

“Linda Schwab: A Holocaust Survivor’s Story” by Sophie Seigel

Jewish Studies Award for Best Creative Project:

“Farhud: Disaster and Resilience in Baghdad” by Laura Roncancio

“Something Old, Something New: Middle-class Jewish Women’s Experience during the Interwar Period in the Middle East and North Africa” by Zan Dyreson

Richard W. and June R. Duffine Prize for Best Graduate Essay:

“The collective impact of private memories: self-representations of Jewish-Mexican identities in family photographs (1930–1955)” by Ana Sofía Semo

“Abjection, Body, and the Collapse of Institutions in Peter Weiss’ Die Ermittlung ” by Suchitra Harnahalli

“Addressing Antisemitism at American Universities: Three-fold Policy Brief for the United States Department of Education” by Rayna Alexander

Reuben and Lizzie Grossman Award for Best Thesis:

“Phoenicia and Philistia: Economic and Cultural Resilience Following the Late Bronze Age”  by Grace Blaha

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Echoes & Reflections is the premier source for Holocaust educational materials and dynamic content, empowering teachers and students with the insight needed to question the past and foresight to impact the future. We partner with educators to support them, foster confidence, and amplify their skills and resources to teach about the Holocaust in a comprehensive and meaningful way. For more information, visit echoesandreflections.org or contact us at  [email protected]

Since 2005, Echoes & Reflections has impacted more than 60,000 educators, reaching an estimated 6 million students across the United States—and at no cost. Through our Holocaust education programs and resources, educators gain the skills, knowledge, and confidence to teach this topic effectively.

Echoes & Reflections  is the premier source for Holocaust educational materials and dynamic content, empowering teachers and students with the insight needed to question the past and foresight to impact the future. We partner with educators to support them, foster confidence, and amplify their skills and resources to teach about the Holocaust in a comprehensive and meaningful way. For more information, visit  echoesandreflections.org  or contact us at  [email protected]

Since 2005, Echoes & Reflections has impacted more than 60,000 educators, reaching an estimated 6 million students across the United States—and at no cost. Through our Holocaust education programs and resources, educators gain the skills, knowledge, and confidence to teach this topic effectively.

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Spokane Community Observance of the Holocaust holding annual writing contest; KSPS to help produce video of local survivors

The 15th annual Eva Lassman Memorial Writing Contest will continue as planned this year, but the art contest and in-person community observance of the Holocaust that usually goes with it have been canceled due to the pandemic.

The event organizers, the Spokane Community Observance of the Holocaust, has partnered with KSPS to produce an educational video that features local Holocaust survivors instead of hosting an in-person community observance. Event co-chair Hershel Zellman said doing the video will also help preserve the stories of survivors.

“We want to capture the stories of the remaining Holocaust survivors before they pass,” he said.

One local survivor is 100 years old, another is 97, Zellman said. Cora Der Koorkanian, a child survivor, died in November at the age of 86. Zellman said she was a major figure in the local Jewish community and had served on the Holocaust community observance committee for several years.

“It was a big loss when she suddenly passed away,” he said. “They’re all leaving us.”

The writing contest is named in honor of Eva Lassman, a Holocaust survivor who lived in Spokane for many years before she died in 2011 at the age of 91. She often spoke at local schools and community events about her experiences in the Majdanek death camp.

During the Holocaust the Nazis killed 6 million Jews as well as millions of others they considered unsuitable, including homosexuals, the disabled and Romani.

The writing contest is held each year to encourage local high school and middle school students to learn about the Holocaust and write about what they’ve learned. This year’s theme is “When Character Matters: Preventing Genocide.”

Students should study the biographies of non-Jews who saved Jews from being tortured or killed during World War II and then identify the character traits that makes them inspirational. Students should then discuss their own character traits that might enable them to confront injustices they witness.

As more and more Holocaust survivors die, it’s important to pass on the lessons learned to the next generation, Zellman said. “We’re trying to imprint on their minds that when evil is allowed to flourish, terrible things can happen,” he said.

Zellman said it’s his hope that learning about the Holocaust will help students learn how to treat each other, how to respond to hate and how to keep genocide from happening again.

“Our position is, it all starts here in our hometown.”

The one good thing about the pandemic forcing the cancellation of the in-person Holocaust observance for the second year in a row is that it allowed organizers to extend the essay contest deadline by two months, Zellman said.

Essays should be up to 1,000 words long and emailed to [email protected] by May 2. Students should include a cover page that includes their name, phone number, email address, school name, grade and teacher’s name. The winners will be announced by June 7.

Scholarships will be awarded to the top three finishers in each of the two divisions. The first place winners will have their essay published in The Spokesman-Review.

Visit https://neveragainspokane.wixsite.com/2021-contest for more information.

Nina Culver can be reached at [email protected]

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