51 Commonwealth Avenue
San Francisco, CA 94118
(415) 264-4203
info@GenocideEducation.org

SAN FRANCISCO, CA – The Genocide Education Project and the Los Angeles Unified School District will provide a two-day workshop for public high school history teachers on Saturday, March 12th and 26th. District officials and workshop leaders are urging community members to bring this exceptional opportunity to the attention of their neighborhood educators.

"We ask everyone who supports the expansion of education on the Armenian Genocide to urge the teachers and administrators they're acquainted with to take advantage of this unique offer," said Raffi Momjian, Executive Director for The Genocide Education Project. "Each teacher at the workshop translates into dozens of students per year gaining a basic understanding of the first genocide of the 20th century and its aftermath."

Teachers attending the optional workshop will receive credit points towards an increase in their salaries. The workshop registration deadline is March 10th (see below for registration info.) The professional training will introduce print, video, and web-based approaches to teaching about the victimization of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire during WWI and how it became the archetype for other genocides of the 20th century.

"We'll provide all the materials and ongoing guidance teachers need to teach about the Armenian Genocide and how it relates to subsequent genocides and important current events," said Momjian. "The background and lessons we'll present will allow teachers to immediately incorporate the Armenian Genocide into their World History courses as mandated by the state."

The Genocide Education Project’s Educational Director Sara Cohan will lead the workshop, which includes presentations by Armenian History scholar Professor Richard Hovanissian to provide the historical context; Ms. Kay Mouradian, author and educator, will share her personal family experience; Facing History and Ourselves will present ways to improve teacher effectiveness in the classroom when teaching about such human rights topics.

The packet of lesson plans teachers will receive at the workshop also helps them fulfill the requirements for several other related topics of California's World History curriculum standards. The workshop participants will explore the history of genocide, genocide examples and common characteristics, the stages of genocide, and will review the fundamental structure of all genocides.

Although California requires instruction on the Armenian Genocide, many educators do not have the background and tools to effectively teach this history. The Los Angeles Unified School District has teamed up with The Genocide Education Project to better ensure that this expectation is met.

"We urge supporters of this effort to personally reach out to high school history teachers, encouraging them to attend," said Momjian. "The more that attend, the faster we can equip the entire district's 350+ history teaching force with this important training."

For more information and registration, contact: info@genocideeducation.org or call (415) 264-4203.

Registration will end at the close of business on Thursday, March 10. Educators who attend will receive a "salary point" from the Los Angeles Unified School District for completion of this class, resource books, handouts, lesson plan ideas, a DVD containing a 5-min ABC News story on the Armenian Genocide, and an opportunity to learn about the Armenian Genocide from experts in the field.