by George J Elbaum

Piedmont High School in Piedmont, CA, is a public school with enrollment of 763 students in grades 9-12 and 16:1 student-teacher ratio.  Per US News & World Report, it ranked #205 in National Rankings, #24 in California high schools and #4 in San Francisco metropolitan area.  (Schools are ranked on their performance on state-required tests, graduation and how well they prepare students for college.)  The Advanced Placement (AP) participation rate of Piedmont students is 91% and 78% passed at least one exam.  Graduation Rate is 97% and total minority enrollment is 42%. 

My presentation to approximately 350 Freshmen and Sophomores was organized by Piedmont teacher Jean Takazawa as part of their Modern World History course, specifically the World War II unit. The teacher estimates that the students have received about six hours of Holocaust education before our program, and the Sophomores have also seen Schindler’s List. 

My presentation was arranged by Lindsay J. Marcus, Education Program Coordinator at the JFCS Holocaust Center