Mr. Distler Named Holocaust Educator of the Year

Mr. Paul Distler was named as the 2019 Holocaust Educator of the Year by the Holocaust Memorial Committee of the New Orleans Jewish Community Center on Friday, March 29.

The Committee’s mission is both to commemorate and educate about the Holocaust and to recognize and encourage educators to continue this important work in their classrooms. For the past 12 years, the committee has selected an “Educator of the Year,” an outstanding local educator who specifically teaches about the Holocaust. Mr. Distler was chosen for this award for his creation of and dedicated work in The Holocaust elective class that is offered to juniors and seniors.

Mr. Distler was nominated for this award by Mrs. Lisa Dubus, the Social Studies Chairperson. Read her nomination statements below.

Please share with us a detailed explanation of the Holocaust education that this teacher is implementing at your school. Describe any materials used, projects created, action taken beyond the classroom, etc.
Paul Distler is an amazing teacher and humanitarian. Besides his coverage in depth in every year in World History (for the past ten years), Paul Distler created an elective course to study the Holocaust. Over 80 students have taken the course this year and more have signed up for next year. The course uses the college text The Holocaust by Peter Neville. This historic timeline of the progression of anti-Semitism is followed. Mr. Distler uses many different multi-media productions to examine and analyze the Holocaust. Every class ends with a real survivor testimony for the students to truly understand humanity at its worst and best. The project for the course requires students to research and present other genocides in history and even today.

Tell us about how this educator is shaping your school culture with their Holocaust Education programming and the impact it is having on your school community.
The Holocaust provides one of the most effective subjects for examining basic moral issues. A structured inquiry into this history yields critical lessons for an investigation into human behavior. The course raises questions of social justice, individual identity, peer pressure, conformity, indifference, and obedience – issues that adolescent girls confront in their daily lives. Students are affected by and challenged to comprehend the magnitude of the Holocaust, and particularly why so many people allowed this genocide to occur by failing either to resist or to protest. They are inspired to reject hate and prejudice in their lives daily. Plus, they are encouraged to fight against political policies that promote exclusion and unfairness. These tenets reflect our school mission and values of respect, excellence, and service.

“I felt completely, and absolutely humbled to be selected,” said Mr. Distler upon the honor. “Never would I have thought this would happen in just the first year of teaching this class. This subject matter is extremely important to me, and I credit my students with taking the course seriously and being so respectful of the millions of lives, and generations of families, that were destroyed.”

Mr. Distler will be presented with his award during the Community Yom Ha’Shoah commemoration on May 5, 2019 at the Uptown JCC.

Congratulations Mr. Distler! This is a well-deserved honor!