Cabrini teacher named “Holocaust Educator of the Year”

Paul Distler, a social studies teacher at Cabrini High School, was named the Holocaust Educator of the Year by the Holocaust Memorial Committee of the New Orleans Jewish Community Center on March 29. For the past 12 years, the committee has selected an “Educator of the Year,” an outstanding local educator who specifically teaches about the Holocaust. Distler will be presented with his award during the Community Yom Ha’Shoah commemoration on May 5, 2019, at the Uptown Jewish Community Center.

A social studies teacher for nearly 14 years at Cabrini, Distler was nominated for the award by Lisa Dubus, the social studies chairperson at Cabrini. Distler was chosen for his creation of and dedicated work in The Holocaust elective class that is offered to sophomores, juniors and seniors.

In her nominating him, Dubus said, “Paul Distler is an amazing teacher and humanitarian. Besides his coverage in-depth every year in world history, Paul created an elective course to study the Holocaust. Over 80 students have taken the course this year, and more have signed up for next year.”

“I felt completely and absolutely humbled to be selected,” Distler said. “Never would I have thought this would happen in just the first year of teaching this class. This subject matter is extremely important to me, and I credit my students with taking the course seriously and being so respectful of the millions of lives and generations of families that were destroyed.”

”The Holocaust provides one of the most effective subjects for examining basic moral issues,” Dubus said.  “The course raises questions of social justice, individual identity, peer pressure, conformity, indifference and obedience – issues that adolescent girls confront in their daily lives. Students are affected by and challenged to comprehend the magnitude of the Holocaust, and particularly why so many people allowed this genocide to occur by failing either to resist or to protest. They are inspired to reject hate and prejudice in their lives daily. Plus, they are encouraged to fight against political policies that promote exclusion and unfairness. These tenets reflect our school mission and values of respect, excellence, and service.”

The committee’s mission is  to commemorate and educate about the Holocaust and to recognize and encourage educators to continue this important work in their classrooms.