News
After years of Efforts Center for Education Will Have Its Seat
After almost five years of efforts, it will be possible to set up the headquarters of the International Center for Education about Auschwitz and the Holocaust in the building known as the “Old Theater.” From the moment in 2005 when it was called into existence by the Polish government, at the urging of former prisoners, the ICEAH has been organizing educational programs at the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial to make it possible for young people to learn in depth about the tragic history of this place.
Already, there is a range of activities directed to school and university students, and teachers and faculty, including courses, seminars, conferences, study residencies, lectures, and multimedia presentations. In 2008 alone, the ICEAH organized seminars, thematic conferences, and educational programs that included 400 lectures and workshops, in which a total of almost 7 thousand people.
Until now, the lack of lecture rooms and the appropriate infrastructure have made it impossible to take full advantage of the rich educational offerings of the ICEAH. “In recent years, we have observed a rise in the need for in-depth, specialist education about Auschwitz and the Holocaust. Thanks to the new headquarters for the Center, it will be possible to reach far more people with knowledge about the Holocaust, and the teaching can finally take place in conditions appropriate to the challenges of education in the 21st century,” said Krystyna Oleksy, director of the ICEAH.
The new headquarters include a state-of-the –art auditorium, multimedia lecture rooms, display space, a reading room, and workstations for independent research and study.
The International Center for Education about Auschwitz and the Holocaust is one of the most important projects at the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum. “Today, when the last former prisoners are departing, only the development of education offers hope that we will understand the significance of the experience of Auschwitz for all humanity. The world is different today, and what we have is worth protecting and caring for. We all therefore need the special prism and reference point of the human fate in the face of the Nazi German project of the Third Reich,” said Museum Director Dr. Piotr M. A. Cywiński.
The adaptation of the Old Theater building could have begun several years ago. It was delayed, however, by the lack of a local zoning ordinance, which has still not been issued. None of the versions presented by the mayor was acceptable to the institutions responsible for the interests of the Memorial. The procedural delays led to the loss of a 2 million zloty donation that the American Grand Circle Foundation of Boston wanted to make to help pay for the new ICEAH premises. The work on transforming the Old Theater into a facility so badly needed for educational work has only now been made possible by the designation of the project as “for the public good.”
For Oświęcim residents, the new Center will mean not only new jobs, but above all a rise in the number of large groups that stay for periods longer than a visit of a few hours.
ICEAH
The Center was created by a decision of the Polish government in 2005. More than 200 former prisoners signed the founding declaration. Forty heads of state, heads of government, and members of royal families were present at the symbolic inauguration of the Center on January 27, 2005. During his visit to Auschwitz in May 2006, Pope Benedict XVI referred to the Center as an Institution that brings hope to the world.
The International Center for Education about Auschwitz and the Holocaust is an integral part of the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum in Oświęcim. It draws on the Museum’s experience and benefits from its scholarly research and collection of exhibits and archival documents. The ICEAH conveys the history of Auschwitz and the Holocaust as a part of general education—that is, through guided tours of the Auschwitz site, and as specialized education leading to deeper knowledge of the history of Auschwitz and the Holocaust.
The International Center for Education about Auschwitz and the Holocaust does the educational work of the Museum. It is intended as an effective instrument in the struggle against ignorance and the distortion of history. Today, in the context of both denial and the repeated formulations about “Polish concentration camps,” this is a particularly important task.
The Old Theater Building
During the war, this building was used as a camp storage depot. From 1984 to 1993, it was used as a convent by the contemplative order of the Discalced Carmelite Sisters. Afterwards, it was leased to the Association of War Victims. After prolonged hearings, the Regional Court in Oświęcim ruled in March 2002 that the Association should turn the building over to the Polish State Treasury. In April 2004, the State Treasury awarded the Old Theater building to the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum in Oświęcim. The Museum plans to use it as premises for the international Center for Education about Auschwitz and the Holocaust.
