Incarnate Word Academy Educators Travel To Poland With Classrooms Without Borders
The Cleveland Cohort as part of the Poland Personally Classrooms wihtout Borders place-based learning experience.Led by Amnon Ophir, second from left, we will continue to build the network of learning here in Cleveland.
Incarnate Word Academy educators Traci Borden and Anne Hribar recently participated in an intensive study seminar, Poland Personally, presented by Classrooms Without Borders. The purpose of the seminar was to increase their understanding of the value of diversity and the results of prejudice. Accompanied by Holocaust survivor Howard Chandler, participants spent over a week visiting many historical sites, including the Warsaw and Krakow ghettoes, as well as Treblinka, Majdanek, and Auschwitz.
Traveling throughout Poland was a gift that has no ceiling. The network built with like-minded individuals who share a passion for preserving humanity via lessons that question that very humanity is strong and gives hope to the generations we will reach.
Examining the human story on a journey throughout Poland along with Auschwitz Survivor Howard Chandler gave way to even more questions, many of which I know I may not be able to find an “answer” to, and also indeed a sense of
Overwhelming uncertainty developed at times of how to accomplish the awesome and daunting task of creating a classroom culture of caring and a sense or even a call of obligation to each individual who needs to be remembered. “No one wants to be forgotten,” said Howard. How do we remember? We must remember as an extension of those who are not here and share their stories. Democracy we know is fragile, not just during the time between World War One and World War Two, it continues to be fragile. How do we protect the rights of others? How do we prevent seeds of hate and indifference from sprouting? How do we forge courage? We can. We must.
Anne Hribar
I am an educator and support staff member at Incarnate Word Academy.