Six postgraduate students will be selected based on demonstrated superior academic abilities as well as individual initiative and leadership skills. Applications from students with interest in Holocaust studies, Jewish Studies, Polish-Jewish history, genocide prevention, human rights or social improvement is strongly encouraged. Those selected to the program will have the costs of the program covered, including travel, materials, and lodging, and will receive a food stipend.

The Program:

After a brief orientation in New York City, the Fellows travel in Poland for three weeks, during which time they visit Krakow, Warsaw, Oświęcim (Auschwitz), and Lodz. The Fellows will also be taken on a study trip throughout south-east Poland to explore the area’s rich Jewish heritage and meet with local Jewish and non-Jewish leaders to learn about pre-war Jewish life, life under the Nazi occupation and Communism, as well as about the status of the Jewish community in Poland today. In Oświęcim, the Fellows attend an intensive program at the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum where they tour the camps, study the history of Jewish, Roma, and Polish inmates, and learn how to use the archives, collections, publications, and educational departments. The Fellows engage in sessions with Polish and German students, which hope to dispel societal stereotypes and prejudices, while at the same time promoting the creation of lasting cross-cultural relationships. It is the goal of the program that, upon returning home, Fellows incorporate the lessons they have learned into their intellectual and professional lives in a significant way.

The Application:

Applications can be found at www.ajcf.org. The preferred candidate is matriculated in a graduate program or has completed an undergraduate degree and is engaged in meaningful continuing studies. Applicants will be required to submit academic transcripts, references, and a letter of recommendation, in addition to two reflective essays. Completed applications must be received by March 3, 2008. For further information, please contact Shiri Sandler, at (646) 437-4276 or ssandler@mjhnyc.org.