About Us
HERC is the trusted subject matter expert and provider of Holocaust education for educators, students, and community members, and a primary organization countering and responding to antisemitism in schools throughout Wisconsin.
our mission
The Holocaust Education Resource Center (HERC) educates students, teachers, and communities about the Holocaust as both a genocide and a warning of the dangers of unchecked hatred and antisemitism. By exploring the atrocities of the Holocaust and the evolving manifestations of antisemitism, we inspire future generations to challenge ignorance and combat all forms of hate.
HERC is a program of the Milwaukee Jewish Federation.
What We Do
At an unprecedented time of increased antisemitism and hate, HERC’s mission has never been more urgent and impactful for children across Wisconsin.
HERC teaches both students and adults the history and circumstances surrounding the Holocaust, which led to the mass murder of six million Jews and millions of non-Jews by the Nazis and their collaborators during World War II. Our offerings include professional development workshops and free consultations for educators; a robust Speakers Bureau of Holocaust survivors, children and grandchildren of survivors, and trained volunteers; community programs with experts and authors in the field; in-class activities, and of course a wide range of printed and digital resources. Education is at the heart of our work to engage youth and adults to speak out for justice, fairness, and respect within their own communities and become the change they wish to see in the world they will inherit.
Act 30
HERC Champions Holocaust Education
In April 2021, Governor Tony Evers signed into law Wisconsin Act 30, which requires all public and many private schools to teach students about the Holocaust and other genocides at least once in both middle and high school. HERC’s leadership was instrumental in initiating and advocating for this legislation, pledging to provide resources to every educator in Wisconsin free of charge. Since the mandate, HERC has become the leading Holocaust educator for the whole state, serving nearly 400 public school districts.
Board 2025-26
Joe Peltz, Chair
Ronna Bromberg Pachefsky, Vice Chair
Nancy Kennedy Barnett
Betty Chrustowski *
Dave Fantle
Bev Greenberg *
Leo Kleiner
Mary Jo Layden
Jaime Levine
Mark Miller *
Ted Neitzke IV
Dr. Monica Olague
Neal Pease
Bruce Peckerman
Arleen Peltz*
Ellen Pelz
Harry Pelz *
Jason Pelz – Treasurer
Todd Richheimer
Rick Rocamora **
Leigh Tabak
Barbara Tenin
Bruce Varick
Liza Wiemer
Eva Zaret
**Immediate Past Chair
*Past Chair
Staff
Samantha Abramson
Executive Director
Milwaukee native Samantha Abramson holds a Master of Arts degree in Museum Studies from the George Washington University and a Bachelor of Arts degree in History with minors in Jewish Studies, Spanish, and English Literature from the University of Minnesota – Twin Cities. Samantha brings over a decade of experience in nonprofits and museums, including the new Capital Jewish Museum, United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Smithsonian Institution, Jewish Heritage North Carolina, and Jewish Museum Milwaukee. Samantha followed this career path because of her passion for connecting multigenerational and youth audiences with history to inspire change for a better tomorrow.
Sam Goldberg
Education Director
Originally from Redondo Beach, California, Sam received her Bachelor’s degree from California State University Channel Islands in Communication for Nonprofit Business. In 2019, she graduated from Uppsala University with her Master’s in Holocaust and Genocide Studies. Her thesis project took her to Rwanda where she researched the impact nonprofit peace education has had on the young generation. It was this interest in genocide education that brought her to HERC, where she works to engage teachers and students to learn stories from the Holocaust so the world can confidently say ‘Never Again’.
Jennifer Koss
Education Coordinator
Jennifer Koss was raised in Wausau, Wisconsin, and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from UW-Stevens Point in English Education and German. Jennifer also obtained an Alternative Education license from Concordia University Wisconsin. She taught middle and high school English in Milwaukee for 17 years and looks forward to using her classroom experience to help educators connect to important Holocaust resources.
Michael Morris
Community Engagement Manager
Michael A. Morris comes to HERC with both professional and academic experience in the fields of Holocaust history and Jewish history. He has previously worked at the Museum of Jewish Heritage – A Living Memorial to the Holocaust and the Jewish Historical Society of Greater Washington and interned at the Yiddish Book Center and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. His two M.A.s are from the George Washington University (Experiential Education and Jewish Cultural Arts) and Stockton University (Holocaust and Genocide Studies). A native of New Jersey, Michael looks forward to exploring Milwaukee and learning about the city’s history while working with the HERC staff to educate the public about the history of the Holocaust.
Sara Sillars
Marketing Manager
Sara is a Wisconsin native, born and raised in La Crosse, WI. After graduating with her BS in Applied Psychology, Sara co-authored the book, Shanghai Deliverance, a memoir by Holocaust survivor and speaker Edie Shafer z’L, which was published in 2014. Soon after she began working for HERC as an educator, teaching about the Holocaust in schools throughout Wisconsin for 6 years. Sara studied the Holocaust at Yad Vashem in Israel and continues to learn and to educate.
Justin Welch
Executive and Development Assistant
Justin is a Door County native and a United States Navy veteran with a BA in History, Jewish Studies, and Religious Studies from UW-Milwaukee, with special interests in ancient religious development and the use of maps to influence perceptions and actions. Justin has previously supported executive and administrative non-profit teams in Sturgeon Bay, WI including We Are HOPE, Inc. and Third Avenue PlayWorks. He strives to convey history as a means of understanding not just the people and events of our world, but the context and import that connects them to our everyday lives.
Corner of hope
Pinat Hatikvah
of the Nathan and Esther Pelz Holocaust Education Resource Center (HERC)
An outdoor space dedicated to life after the Holocaust, situated outside of Harry and Rose Samson Family Jewish Community Center in Whitefish Bay.
OUR VISION
HERC’s lay and professional leadership are committed to approaching education about the Holocaust and antisemitism in a way that is rooted in Survivors’ experience – recognizing the millions of Jews and other victims impacted and murdered – before, during, and after – this genocide. We value the use of primary sources to develop understanding, compassion, and empathy in our learners. We are dedicated to nurturing critical thinking skills, empowering people to question, analyze, and interpret information in order to be informed, responsible citizens. We honor the power of history to shape our understanding of the present. By remembering the past and passing down its lessons l’dor v’dor (from generation to generation), we create a legacy of wisdom, resilience, and shared humanity.