Twelve Orange County students were recently honored by Chapman University’s 25th annual Holocaust Art and Writing Contest, an event that highlights creative responses to the lessons of one of history’s most tragic chapters.
Hosted by Chapman University and The 1939 Society, the annual competition serves as a platform for students to reflect on the lessons of history, explore their own roles in promoting remembrance and engage in critical dialogue about the Holocaust’s lasting impact on society.
This year’s theme, “Answering the Call of Memory: Choosing to Act,” encouraged participants to select and watch a full-length testimony of a Holocaust survivor or rescuer from specific sources. Students were asked to select impactful memories from these testimonies, translating them into various forms of art, poetry, prose or film as a means of responding to the enduring legacy of the Holocaust.
Since its inception in 1999, the contest has evolved from a local initiative into an international competition, attracting middle and high school students from more than 230 schools worldwide.
This year’s competition recognized 16 students, with 12 hailing from local schools. To view the entire list of winners, click on Chapman University’s contest webpage.
Here are the other stories we’ve been tracking this week:
- The Westminster School District’s inaugural cohort of students who learned both English and Vietnamese since kindergarten will seamlessly continue their bilingual education in high school through a partnership with the Huntington Beach Union High School District.
- Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman donated half a million dollars to El Modena High’s baseball team, contributing to the construction of a $1.6 million state-of-the-art baseball clubhouse.
- The California League of Educators has unveiled its picks for 2024 Educators of the Year, including two teachers from the Fullerton School District.
- Fox 11 LA invited seventh-grade student Katelyn Nguyen from the Westminster School District on its morning news show to talk about her Orange County Spelling Bee experience and her upcoming trip to the Scripps National Spelling Bee in May.
- The Orange County Department of Education’s Inside the Outdoors program is inviting students to its summer camp, where they will explore nature while strengthening their science skills through new hobbies and crafts.
- OCDE is inviting the community to take a brief survey that will help shape its new website. It’s part of an effort to create a more intuitive and accessible online experience tailored to the diverse needs of its users.
- El Camino Real Charter High School will defend California’s 20-year U.S. National Decathlon championship streak next month, following the team’s state-level victory in Santa Clara last weekend.
- The H2 Grand Prix Foundation is empowering girls in engineering through hydrogen-powered remote control car races. The program aims to foster STEM skills and prepare participants for careers with a sustainable focus.
- Two members of the Orange Unified School District’s Board of Education were removed from their positions after the Orange County Registrar of Voters certified the results of the March recall election, as reported by the OC Register.
- A former Orange County administrator pleaded guilty to embezzling funds from the Magnolia School District.
- More than 5,700 Orange County third-, fourth- and fifth-graders attended the 27th annual Children’s Water Education Festival, sponsored by the Orange County Water District, to learn about protecting water resources and the environment.
- Los Angeles Unified is celebrating a grand opening of a 25-unit complex offering affordable, permanent supportive housing to aid families transitioning from homelessness.
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