AU alumna a national winner of Shine a Light on Anti-Semitism Civic Courage Award

ASHLAND, Ohio – A Holocaust class that Heidi (Bench ’02) Meyer took at Ashland University 25 years ago put her on the path to an impressive honor.

It was recently revealed that Meyer, a teacher at Elmwood High School in northwest Ohio since 2008, was one of two high school educators from across the country selected for a 2024 Shine A Light on Anti-Semitism Civic Courage Award by the Jewish Education Project. There were 19 total winners in various categories, ranging from educators and students to content creators and game developers.

The Civic Courage Award recognizes those “who take bold action to combat dangerous trends” and “whether through education, activism or creative expression, recipients … are lighting the way forward at a time when standing against hate has never been more crucial,” according to the award announcement.

Specific to Meyer, it read “Heidi’s unwavering commitment to combating ignorance with knowledge and fostering empathy exemplifies her passion for creating a more inclusive and compassionate school environment.”

Meyer was first moved deeply by the atrocities of the Holocaust during the AU course taught by the late David Rausch, Ph.D. She labeled it a “springboard” and now makes it an annual goal to expose a new generation of students to the Holocaust. She does so via a number of teaching methods, some inspired by Rausch.

“Dr. Dave was just really good. He knew how to make connections. He showed us documentaries. He just knew how to connect with content,” explained Meyer. “I just loved him as a professor and the Holocaust course that he taught … it opened up my eyes.”

Today, Meyer, who earned both a bachelor’s degree and an M.Ed. in curriculum and instruction from AU, is the one who provides engaging lessons. She has her students’ full attention on topics in AP American history, world history and AP U.S. government, but when it comes to the Holocaust, she goes above and beyond.

In addition to reading resources—some from the same book that she was first introduced to in Rausch’s class—and showing documentaries with actual footage of the Holocaust, Meyer welcomes in diverse community speakers to educate students, coordinates visits with Holocaust survivor families and leads field trips to a number of Holocaust museums, including to The Zekelman Holocaust Center in Farmington Hills, Mich., the last 18 years.

Meyer, citing Elie Wiesel, a Holocaust survivor and Nobel Peace Prize winner, remarked, “When you listen to a witness, you become a witness, and that’s been my motto in teaching. We try to make connections for these kids to make it personal because if you don’t make it personal it means nothing. It’s just history.”

A couple of years ago, when Meyer noticed some cultural insensitivity occurring in the hallways of Elmwood, she reached out to the Jewish Federation and Foundation of Greater Toledo for assistance. She also has successfully applied for grants through the Ohio Holocaust and Genocide Memorial and Education Commission. Those undertakings have helped expand both staff and student programming, including field trips to Holocaust museums in Cleveland, Cincinnati and Detroit, all in an effort to continue “connecting with content.”

“You’ve got to see it to believe it. I know it’s hard to see it, but if you don’t, you’re not going to believe it because it’s ugly things we human beings do to each other,” explained Meyer. “When you humanize it and try to explain … how easy it is to dehumanize somebody that really helps (the students) because they always want to know why. Why would anybody ever do that?”

When they’re back in the classroom following field experiences, Meyer encourages the students to dive deeper into the content as well as to try to relate it to today’s current events, which usually leads to productive discussions.

“Engaging in critical thinking is really important, and understanding the sources of factual history that’s being presented to you,” Stephen Rothschild, CEO of the Jewish Federation and Foundation of Greater Toledo, told The Toledo Blade. “And being open to challenging assumptions and working at finding the truth.”

As for the award, Meyer didn’t even know she had been nominated by those she now partners with regularly at the Jewish Federation and Foundation of Greater Toledo and said “it was all a surprise to me.” She played it off, but those in the community and at the school clearly understand the powerful impact she is making.

“We need more teachers like Heidi. We need more human beings like Heidi,” added Rothschild.

Meyer is grateful for the recognition and the $2,000 stipend, which will likely go to future field trips. But, her top priorities are to help make other educators across Ohio aware of the opportunities available through grants and to continue to guide her beloved students at Elmwood in becoming more engaged, empathetic citizens and critical thinkers as they graduate and move on.

“I planted a seed or there’s a ripple going on, and you hope that that seed grows or that ripple continues,” Meyer said.