Gift Advances Holocaust Awareness through ֳ’s Center for Judaic Studies
A new professorship at ֳ honors Holocaust survivors Emil and Eva Hecht while advancing critical education on antisemitism and genocide.
ֳ's outdoor Holocaust Awareness and Action Site.
The ֳ is poised to become a national leader in Holocaust awareness and education, thanks to a gift from Marshall and Helene Abrahams and the Feiner Family Foundation. Their generous contribution has established The Emil and Eva Hecht Visiting Professor in Holocaust and Antisemitism Studies Fund within the Center for Judaic Studies in the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences. The Hechts were Holocaust survivors who relocated to Colorado and became leaders in the Denver community. They frequently told their stories of survival to educate others about the horrors of the Holocaust.
The gift will provide immediate resources for teaching and programmatic leadership over the next three years, expanding the Center for Judaic Studies’ current work to increase Holocaust awareness. In addition to academic studies at the undergraduate and graduate levels, as well as lifelong learning and social action opportunities, the Center houses the Holocaust Awareness Institute (HAI). For decades, HAI has been a leader in Holocaust education in Colorado. HAI’s platform is the premier educational resource supporting the State of Colorado’s mandate for Holocaust and genocide education in public schools.
The Hecht Visiting Professor will lead the teacher education program, ensuring future generations have access to critical Holocaust scholarship. This role will also involve digitizing survivors’ stories and conducting expansive public outreach. The Hecht Visiting Professor will provide expert leadership both within the ֳ campus and throughout the broader community.
“This position places our Center at the forefront of academic innovations in Judaic Studies, and it vaults the College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences into a league with other, much larger R1 schools,” says Adam Rovner, director of the Center for Judaic Studies. “Thanks to our donors’ generosity, ֳ students will now have access to cutting-edge scholarship and dedicated courses that treat aspects of historical and contemporary antisemitism—a matter of urgency in America today.”
“My colleagues and I aim to find the best possible public scholar to fill this position and helm our long-standing Holocaust Awareness Institute,” continues Rovner. “For a half century, our Center’s HAI has been a leader in Holocaust education and commemoration. Our donors’ recognition of the importance of funding this visiting professorship pays tribute to the legacy of Emil and Eva Hecht and their family, while advancing Holocaust education into the future. Leaders like the Feiners and Abrahams, who are willing to invest in the next generation, make it possible for ֳ students to learn from some of the world’s best scholars about some of the worst history of our world.”
“The Feiner Family Foundation is honored to support the hiring of a distinguished Holocaust professor to teach the lessons of the Holocaust regarding hope, compassion, tolerance, and freedom throughout the state of Colorado,” says Michael Feiner. “In these volatile times both here in the United States and throughout the world, it’s important that we pay attention to the lessons that history has taught us.”
The Hecht Visiting Professor will immediately begin the work envisioned for an endowed chair of Holocaust and antisemitism studies. Fundraising to permanently establish an endowed chair to lead the work of Holocaust education and awareness at ֳ is one of the philanthropic priorities of 貹.
“We are deeply grateful for the visionary generosity of the Abrahams family and the Feiner Family Foundation in establishing this visiting professorship,” says Chancellor Jeremy Haefner. “Their gift will empower us to recruit a preeminent scholar to lead the research and teaching in this field, expanding our collective knowledge and action around Holocaust awareness at the University and in the City of Denver.”
The establishment of the Hecht Visiting Professor honors the past and lays the foundation for future generations to gain a deeper understanding of the Holocaust and antisemitism. The generosity of the Abrahams and Feiner families stands as an inspiring example, providing resources for research, teaching and action in today’s world.
To learn more about ֳ’s Center for Judaic Studies and how your gift in support of the Endowed Chair of Holocaust Studies can advance the Center’s work, contact Executive Director of Development Jennifer Garner atJennifer.garner@du.edu or 303-871-7467.
