Presenters

Keynote Speaker: Ida Paluch Kersz Holocaust Survivor Testimony

Ida Paluch Kersz was born in Sosnowiec, Poland in May 1939, just months before Germany invaded Poland and the Second World War began. The Nazis immediately occupied the city in which she lived, creating a ghetto that ultimately saw the deportation of 35,000 Jews to Auschwitz concentration camp. In the summer of 1942, with deportation imminent, her family tragically came apart, but Ida was given a new life, her Jewish identity known only to her new parents, a young Polish Christian couple anxious to start a family. Unfortunately, Ida’s twin brother ended up in Majdanek death camp, but the two would not see each other — or know the other’s fate for 53 years.

In 1995, she saw a photograph of a young man in the Chicago Tribune. She also had a picture of her grandparents, and when she looked at the young man and looked at her grandfather, she saw a marked resemblance. And she said, “I must find out more about him.” She found the lady who interviewed him in Warsaw. She spoke with her, and she said, “Ida, he does not have any memory of his childhood.” Ida said, “Give me his phone number.” She called him in Poland and one of his sons answered. She told him, “I want to speak with your father.” He said, “He’s not here.” Ida said, “Well, when your father comes home, tell him to call me because I think he may be my twin brother.”

Ida arrived in Chicago in 1963, having spent the previous six years in Israel where she had married and gave birth to her daughter, Esther. In Chicago, she found work in a microphone factory and later owned a dry-cleaning and alteration business. She eventually sold the business, divorced her husband, and moved with her daughter to Skokie, Ill. A few years later, she made a visit to the newly opened Holocaust Museum in Skokie, where she became a volunteer and speaker, contributing countless hours sharing the story of her survival with thousands of students and visitors to the museum. She currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center and lives in Skokie. In 2019, her memoir, Unveiled Memories, was published with the help of the Danny Spungen Family Foundation. The book became very popular and has been sold in many countries. It also drew the attention of two German producers of documentaries, who saw an opportunity to make a documentary about this unusual story of the reunion of Ida and Adam. They came to Chicago and made sure that Ida and Adam would agree to the making of the documentary. It took three years to produce the documentary and it has now been shown around the world. In 2022, Ida lost her brother to COVID-19. Ida gets many invitations to speak to different organizations throughout the U.S.


Darryle Clott Distinguished Educator and Mistress of Ceremony

Darryle Clott earned a bachelor’s degree in 1966 and a master’s in 1971 from The University of WI—La Crosse. She retired from La Crescent (MN) High School in 2004 where she taught a comprehensive unit on the Holocaust for several years in her English classes. The classes inspired her to attend the Teachers’ Summer Institute on Holocaust and Jewish Studies and Jewish Resistance in Poland and Israel in 2001, and she is currently on their Alumni Advisory Board. As her interest in the Holocaust grew, Clott became a member of the American Friends of the Jewish Fighters Museum Consortium of Holocaust Educators and is the founder of the Midwest Holocaust Education Consortium. She is a Teacher Fellow at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington D.C

Darryle leads Holocaust Educator Workshops and is an associate of the Ethics in Leadership Institute at Viterbo University. She is a member of the Chancellor’s Community Council at the University of WI—La Crosse. She is instrumental in bringing Holocaust survivors to the La Crosse community at Viterbo University including Nobel Peace Prize winner Elie Wiesel, Presidential Medal of Honor winner Gerda Weissmann Klein, and Otto Frank’s step-daughter Eva Schloss.

Darryle was a participant in the 2006 Educators’ Seminar of the Educational Program on Yiddish Culture at the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research in New York City. She is on the Editorial Board of Yeshiva University’s PRISM: An Interdisciplinary Journal for Holocaust Educators. Darryle was honored with the Gregory P. Wegner Holocaust Education Award at the Congregation Sons of Abraham Synagogue in 2008 and 2014 and is the Graff Distinguished Alumnus Award winner for 2008 at the University of WI—La Crosse. In 2009 Darryle was chosen to be part of a League of Women Voters project, “The Road She Traveled”, for local women who have had a significant impact on their community.

Darryle is the 2009 La Crosse Toastmasters’ Communication and Leadership award winner. In October 2010, she was one of ten American Holocaust educators chosen to travel to Poland to study Holocaust pedagogy with Polish Holocaust educators in a program sponsored by the Polish Embassy in Washington D.C. The La Crosse area YWCA Tribute to Outstanding Women Trailblazer Award was presented to Darryle in November 2010. In May 2011 Darryle was given the Ellis Island Medal of Honor. The medals are presented on Ellis Island to American citizens of diverse origins for their outstanding contributions to their communities, their nation and the world.

In April 2014 Darryle was honored by Fort McCoy with the Patriotic Civilian Service Award in appreciation for exceptional support to the Fort McCoy community of soldiers and civilians.

Darryle received the Pope John XXIII Award for Distinguished Service from Viterbo University in May 2017. The award, the highest non-academic award conferred by Viterbo, is given to those who have distinguished themselves through outstanding leadership and through service to higher education, to community and to humankind. In January 2018, Darryle received the Iverson Freking Ecumenical Recognition Award which recognizes the dedication of people to ecumenical endeavors and who reflect a positive commitment to Coulee Region communities. Darryle was honored to serve as Mrs. Oktoberfest 2019 - 2020. Most recently in November 2023, Darryle was recognized and honored by the La Crescent Education Foundation by being inducted into the Wall of Excellence.


Stephen Feinberg "Germany Before the Nazi 1918 - 1933" and "Europe Before World War II 1918 - 1939"

Steve had the honor of working at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM) in Washington, DC from 1996 to 2011. From 1996 to 2000, he was the individual responsible for the development and implementation of the Museum Teacher Fellowship Program. As Director of the National Outreach program at the USHMM from 2000 to 2009, he was responsible for the creation, design, and implementation of the Museum’s entire national educational outreach program. He was the Special Assistant for Education Programs in the National Institute for Holocaust Education (NIHE) at the USHMM from 2009 to 2011. In this capacity, he coordinated NIHE’s International Educational activities as well as directing the USHMM’s teacher education programs in California, Florida, Texas, and Illinois.

He was a member of the United States delegation to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) from 1999 to 2011, working extensively with the IHRA Education Working Group. In addition to conducting teacher training programs across the United States, he has also coordinated or participated in programs in Europe, South America, Africa, Asia, Australia, and New Zealand.

He joined the USHMM’s staff in Washington in 1996, but had been an educational consultant for the Museum since 1990. He is the co-editor, with Dr. Samuel Totten, of Essentials of Holocaust Education (Routledge, 2016) and Teaching and Studying The Holocaust (Allyn & Bacon, 2000).

Prior to his work at the Museum, he was a Social Studies teacher in public and private schools in Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Paris, France. He also served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Morocco (1968-1970) and Thailand (1974-1975). Mr. Feinberg received his bachelors’ degree in history from UCLA and his masters’ degree from Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education.


Dana Humphrey "Manipulating the Masses: Analyzing Nazi Propaganda" and "Nazi Education and Hitler Youth"

Dana Humphrey has 43 years of educational experience as a middle school English teacher, department chair, district curriculum coordinator, and professional development presenter. She serves as the ELA consultant for the St. Louis Regional Professional Development Center. She has presented numerous workshops at the local, state, and national level and has written and co-authored articles and chapters in books on effective instructional pedagogy. 

Dana is a 2000 Museum Teacher Fellow from the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM) and a member of two Holocaust education consortium. She serves on the St. Louis Kaplan Feldman Holocaust Museum Council and is a teacher educator at the museum. She has presented for the USHMM Belfer Conference, the USHMM CHEC Conferences, the National Council of Teachers of English, the St. Louis Holocaust Museum, and the Missouri Holocaust Institute. Dana is also a gubernatorial appointee to the Missouri Holocaust Education and Awareness Commission.


Kristi Moulton "Using Graphic Novels in Holocaust Education"

Kristi Moulton is the librarian at Logan High School in La Crosse, WI. She holds a Masters in Library and Information Science and a BS in Communication Art & Literature Education. Professional interests include research, information literacy, and partnering with teachers to incorporate high-quality, engaging resources in all subject areas, as well as helping readers find their next favorite book. She loves theater and has been involved on and offstage for many years, and in 2014 co-directed "And Then They Came For Me: Remembering the World of Anne Frank" with Darryle Clott. She is the mother of 2 energetic boys and enjoys reading, traveling with her husband Mark, and eating ice cream.


Sam Goldberg "What HERC (Holocaust Education Resource Center) can offer WI Educators" and "Antisemitism in Schools"

Sam Goldberg graduated with her Master of Arts in Holocaust and Genocide studies at Uppsala University in Sweden. Since October 2020, she has been working as the Director of Education at the Nathan and Esther Pelz Holocaust Education Resource Center (HERC). During this time Sam has helped to launch HERC’s digital toolkit, the Holocaust Education Map and has led numerous professional development and student workshops throughout the state.


Liza Wiemer "Teaching The Assignment"

Liza Wiemer is an award-winning educator with over twenty years of teaching experience. Her second novel, The Assignment, was published by Delacorte Press and has received 12 honors, including being named a Sydney Taylor Notable Book. To date, The Assignment has also been translated to Russian, Polish, Italian, and Korean and has been optioned for film. In addition, Liza has had two adult nonfiction books published and several short stories included in the New York Times bestselling Small Miracles series. Since August 2020, she has presented over 300 talks and workshops across the globe. She’s been interviewed by media outlets like NPR, BBC, ABC, and gave a TedXTalk at the UW-Madison. Her debut picture book, Out and About: A Tale of Giving, was published by Kalaniot Books in August 2023. A graduate of UW-Madison, Liza has two married sons and lives in Milwaukee, Wisconsin with her husband, Jim.


Dave Nelson "Teaching Squirrel is Alive"

David P. Nelson is a language arts teacher at Westby Area High School. He has integrated a Holocaust literature unit in his AP Language and Composition course and his Advanced World Literature course for the past 27 years. His initial interest in Holocaust education was heightened while he was enrolled in a Holocaust education course instructed by Gregory P. Wegner at UW- La Crosse. This fervor has risen to new heights through the encouragement and support he has received from Darryle Clott. Nelson has attended several Teaching the Holocaust workshops, directed by Darryle Clott, at Viterbo University.

Nelson earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in English and secondary education from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse in December 1994. In his 25 years of teaching, supervising, and mentoring at Westby Area High School, 29 years in education total, he has also coached numerous sports, served on various committees, and continues to search for fresh and innovative methods in which to instruct all of his students. Nelson’s wife, Dawn, is the elementary principal in the Cashton Area School District, and their son Noah is a student at Viterbo University majoring in sports management and minoring in English writing. The Nelsons have resided in Westby since 2002.


Ruth Busalacchi Peter’s War Readers’ Theater

Ruth Busalacchi lives in Waukesha, Wisconsin, with her husband, Rick. She has two sons: one who lives in Whitewater, WI, and another, who resides in Nashville, TN. She has been an educator for 30+ years, mainly at the middle-school level, in the Germantown, and Menomonee Falls school districts (Southeastern Wisconsin). She currently teaches sixth grade students, in her World Geography class. Her goal, as a teacher, has always been to immerse and engage her students, to help them understand, and appreciate the world around them.

Last spring, she was unknowingly presented with the “teaching moment of a lifetime”, and was afforded an opportunity to collaborate with Holocaust survivor, Peter Feigl. The entire experience highlighted the “power” of first-person resources, but more importantly, emphasized the depth that “one story” can have on the mind and souls of a new generation of students.

Ruth wishes to share her resources, strategies, and insight, that helped make this “gift of hope” a reality.


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