(PDF) (DOC) (JPG)September 17, 2019

MAHWAH, N.J. – Dr. Frank Mecklenburg, Director of Research and Chief Archivist at The Leo Baeck Institute, New York, will speak on Tuesday, October 22 at 1:45 p.m. in the Alumni Lounges of the Robert A. Scott Student Center at Ramapo College of New Jersey about “The Crucial Year of 1938: The Fate of Jews in the Balance.” The program, presented under the auspices of the Gross Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies, is free and open to the public.

Dr. Mecklenburg’s talk will be based on the work that he and a team of archivists, librarians and IT consultants did to create the Leo Baeck Institute‘s “1938Projekt (1938 Project),” an exciting initiative that tracked the experience of German Jews in 1938 on a day-by-day basis. The project discusses the transformations over the course of 1938 and the importance of learning from the past, and asks: how we can comprehend daily life under the Nazi regime; how such “normalcy” illustrates how authoritarian regimes consolidate their power and marginalize elements of the population; and how we can identify parallels between the past and today’s international crises of refugees and discrimination against minorities and immigrants. The LBI’s 1938Projekt, by posting one item each day that relates to what happened on the exact day eighty years ago, illustrates the past and also presents a demand for us to think about what’s happening today, too.

Frank Mecklenburg is the Director of Research and Chief Archivist of the Leo Baeck Institute, New York. He received his Ph.D. in modern German history in 1981 from the Technische Universität Berlin. In 2000, he was involved in the LBI’s move to the Center for Jewish History, as well as in the establishment of a joint archives facility with the Jewish Museum Berlin.

The Leo Baeck Institute is a research library and archive that documents the history and culture of German-speaking Jewry, primarily in the 19th and 20th centuries, but also includes documents dating back to the middle ages. It was founded in 1955 as a repository for the books, papers, photos and documents that were salvaged from Central Europe after World War II and donated to the Institute.

For information or to request disability-related accommodations for this event, please contact holgen@ramapo.edu or call 201-684-7409.

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About Ramapo College

Ramapo College of New Jersey is the state’s premier public liberal arts college and is committed to academic excellence through interdisciplinary and experiential learning, and international and intercultural understanding. The comprehensive college is situated among the beautiful Ramapo Mountains, is within commuting distance to New York City, was named one of the 50 Most Beautiful College Campuses in America by CondeNast Traveler, and boasts the best on-campus housing in New Jersey per Niche.com. Established in 1969, Ramapo College offers bachelor’s degrees in the arts, business, data science, humanities, social sciences and the sciences, as well as in professional studies, which include business, education, nursing and social work. In addition, the College offers courses leading to teacher certification at the elementary and secondary levels, and offers graduate programs leading to master’s degrees in Accounting, Applied Mathematics, Business Administration, Contemporary Instructional Design, Computer Science, Creative Music Technology, Data Science, Educational Leadership, Nursing, Social Work and Special Education, as well as a Doctor of Nursing Practice.

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