Through its vibrant Education Division, ADL strives to create a society free from hate. It works through four fundamental areas: K-12 and higher education programs; community-based educational programs; development of educational materials, and expansion of ADL programs in nontraditional learning arenas, such as corporations and government agencies.

Together with the University of Pennsylvania Center for the Study of Diversity Education, A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE Institute is designing and implementing a validation study of its materials.

In cooperation with a number of national, regional and local education organizations and projects, ADL programs in 1997 included: co-sponsorship of a national College/University Diversity Workshop with the National Association for Campus Activities; cooperation with the New York City Board of Education to create an essay contest in honor of Chiune Sugihara, the Japanese Consul to Lithuania during World War II who issued thousands of visas to Japan to Jewish refugees fleeing the Holocaust and is the only Japanese citizen recognized by Israel as being among the Righteous of the Nations; creation of a Study Guide with Lifetime Learning System which corresponded with the WNBC-TV network broadcast of "Schindler's List"; formation of an alliance with Blacks and Jews in Conversation -- an organization consisting of sitting judges of the New York Supreme Court who strengthen Black/Jewish relations; collaboration with the European Union to bring the A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE Institute Peer Training Program to five member countries; uniting with Dartmouth College to implement and evaluate an ongoing student diversity initiative (funded by the Trinitas Foundation), and co-sponsorship of two national conferences with the National Institute for Dispute Resolution and the National Association for Mediation in Education.

New materials included a student-produced video entitled "The Faces of Bigotry," which consists of several video vignettes aimed at starting conversations about diversity-related issues; a national Peer Training Manual, and numerous study guides to accompany ADL-distributed publications and videos. Through funding by the Bertelsmann Science Foundation, A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE Institute materials are being adapted and published for use throughout Germany.

CHILDREN OF THE DREAM^Æ

Originally created to address the rift between African Americans and American Jews, this program brings Ethiopian-Israeli students to the U.S. to share with American students their experiences as Black Jews. CHILDREN OF THE DREAM now includes a trip to Israel by some of the American students to reunite with their Ethiopian-Israeli friends.

In 1997, as part of this impressive program, 21 Black, Latino and Asian-American teen-agers from Los Angeles, Santa Ana (CA) and Seattle traveled to Israel for two weeks.

In the program's newest phase, called Dream Dialogue, Jewish students and the young people of color who went to Israel make a commitment to meet on a monthly basis, develop leadership skills and work with their peers to fight bigotry.

PROGRAMS WORLDWIDE

The A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE Institute's outstanding anti-bias and diversity-training teams in the U.S. have inspired and generated similar -- and much needed -- programs in other countries.

In Israel, the Institute has been accredited by the Ministry of Education. To enhance understanding and trust between religious and secular youngsters, staff and students from both kinds of schools have received Institute training. Joint activities in the respective schools will eventually take place, with the goals of allaying tensions and strengthening mutual respect.

Experienced health care-workers -- one-third are Arab -- have attended Institute diversity training, which has immeasurably improved their ability to communicate with immigrants from all over the world.

The Centre EuropÈen Juif d'Information (CEJI) in Brussels has received funds to implement the A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE Institute program at the secondary school level in four European nations. This school-based initiative will involve the relevant communities as well as academic experts, and will allow for an in-depth cross-cultural study of the A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE Institute training program.

Building upon the A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE Institute programs currently underway in Berlin, Bremen, Hamburg, Lubeck and Rostock, Germany, the Research Group Youth and Europe, an academic unit from the Center for Applied Political Research of Munich University, and the Bertlesmann Science Foundation are working with ADL to implement the Institute's programs in additional German cities. These programs, which pay special attention to the role of Jews in German teacher training, are probably the first cooperative venture ever between an American Jewish organization and German educational, domestic and foreign policy institutions.

At the request of the International Movement Against All Forms of Discrimination and Racism U.S. Committee, a nongovernmental agency of the United Nations, the A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE Institute offered a three-day training program in Japan that introduced the philosophy and techniques of the Institute and analyzed their viability for Japanese society. Attending the program were representatives from corporations, community groups, schools and colleges.

RESOURCES

What to Tell Your Child About Prejudice. Produced in cooperation with the National PTA and available in both English and Spanish, this widely disseminated pamphlet is a valuable resource for parents and teachers.

Anti-Defamation League Resources for Classroom and Community. A catalog of videos, classroom activities, teachers' discussion guides, books, posters and other materials.

CAMPUS AFFAIRS

American colleges' devotion to freedom of speech also opens the way for cynical bigots and extremists to abuse that freedom and mislead and victimize members of campus communities. ADL's Campus Affairs Department works closely with college administrators and students to ensure that institutions of higher learning remain devoted to civility and reasoned discourse.

CAMPUS EDITORS MISSION

Editors of 24 American college and university campus newspapers traveled on an ADL mission to Israel and Poland where they met with officials, local media, students and community leaders. The goal was to familiarize them with issues important to Israel and the Jewish community, and to inform them about the Holocaust. Twelve editors from campuses across the country were part of the fifth Albert Finkelstein Memorial Study Mission and 12 were from Pennsylvania who participated in the newly established Raymond and Ruth Perelman Study Mission to Israel and Poland for Campus Newspaper Editors.

RESOURCES

Schooled in Hate: Anti-Semitism on Campus. A survey of the numerous anti-Jewish acts on campuses by ADL Campus Affairs and Research Departments.

HOLOCAUST

The Braun Holocaust Institute was created as a resource center for Holocaust information, to provide advice to educators on how best to teach the subject, and to expose and challenge the propaganda of Holocaust deniers and neo-Nazis.

Starting in 1997, the League's Holocaust Poster Series was displayed at various FBI offices around the country. Initiated by the San Diego Regional Office, the traveling exhibit was part of the first annual Holocaust Memorial Ceremony at FBI Headquarters in Washington, DC, where Nobel Peace Prize winner Elie Weisel, FBI Director Louis Freeh and ADL National Director Abraham H. Foxman spoke.

RESOURCES

Dimensions: A Journal of Holocaust Studies. Contributors include such distinguished writers as Peter Gay, Stephen E. Ambrose, Don DeLillo and Robert Coles. Published by the Braun Holocaust Institute.

IN LOS ANGELES In 1997, as an outgrowth of Dream Dialogue, a diverse group of California high school students wrote, acted in and produced a 20-minute video on racism and anti-Semitism. Entitled "STOP THE HATE," the video is used nationally in the A WORLD OF DIFFERENCEÆ Institute's Peer Training, as well as the STOP THE HATE program funded by the Department of Education. IN BOSTON In 1994, four professional sports teams -- the Boston Celtics, New England Patriots, Boston Red Sox and Boston Bruins -- joined 6,000 middle and high school students, and teachers from 300 schools, in a spectacular one-day stand against hatred in Boston. Called Team Harmony, that first-ever event has grown more successful each year. In 1997, more than 10,000 students filled Boston's FleetCenter, and First Lady Hillary Clinton gave the keynote address. In a sports arena charged with music from U-2, Team Harmony IV participants pledged in unison "to do my best to interrupt prejudice and to stop those who, because of hate, would hurt, harass or violate the civil rights of anyone." IN CHICAGO ADL's Greater Chicago/Upper Midwest Regional Office arranged for 20 racially and ethnically diverse teen-agers to visit Washington, DC, as part of its annual Youth Leadership Mission. After touring the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, hearing the personal testimony of a Holocaust survivor and a briefing at the Pentagon about anti-bias training, they explored with civil rights and human relations organizations how minority groups can work together more effectively. IN DALLAS "Visas for Life: The Remarkable Story of Chiune and Yukiko Sugihara and the Rescue of More than 6,000 Jews" is a traveling exhibit sponsored by ADL's North Texas/Oklahoma Regional Office, the Japan-America Society of Dallas/Fort Worth and the Dallas Memorial Center for Holocaust Studies. It details the extraordinary efforts of Chuine Sugihara, the Japanese Consul in Kaunas, Lithuania, at the start of World War II, who saved Jews from death at the hands of the Nazis. Thousands of people attended the exhibit during the five weeks it was on display in Dallas.