The Midwest Center for Holocaust Education teaches the history of the Holocaust, applying its lessons to counter indifference, intolerance, and genocide.
Beginning on May 10, 1933 the Nazis burned books deemed “un-German” in the public squares of university towns throughout Germany. More than 25,000 books were thrown into bonfires during ceremonies that included torchlight parades, band music, “fire oaths,” and speeches by Nazi officials, university professors, and student leaders.
In recognition of this history and in support of the freedom to read today, MCHE offers an annual give away of banned books during the American Library Association’s annual Banned Books Week, October 4-10.
Entry Deadline: October 4, 2026. One winner will be selected by random drawing each day of Banned Books Week. Winners will be notified by email. One entry per person.
In 2027, we observe the 85th anniversary of the Nazis systematic plan to annihilate Europe’s Jewish population—known as the Final Solution. This journey from Germany to Poland follows the path of destruction while honoring the resilience and vibrancy of Jewish life before the Holocaust. We will explore Jewish heritage sites that tell the stories of thriving communities before the war, we will visit ghettos, memorials, museums, and former killing centers, to deepen our understanding of how the Holocaust unfolded, commemorate the lives lost, and honor those who resisted and survived.
This experience is open to MCHE members for enrollment.
“Through Hell to the Midwest” is a mapping project that traces the stories of survivors who settled in the Kansas City area. Using oral history testimony collected by the Midwest Center for Holocaust Education and dually housed in the Fortunoff Archive at Yale University. Dr. Amber Nickell, Professor Hollie Marquess, and student Sarah Keiss from the Fort Hays State University History Department have mapped these survivors and their experiences. Each map tells the story of one Holocaust survivor, tracing their steps from their hometowns in Central and Eastern Europe, through their Holocaust experiences to their new lives in Kansas and Missouri.
Support our mission to teach the history of the Holocaust, applying its lessons to counter indifference, intolerance, and genocide.
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Our mission is to teach the history of the Holocaust, applying its lessons to counter indifference, intolerance, and genocide.
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