About Us
For more than 30 years, Facing History and Ourselves has believed that education is the key to combating bigotry and nurturing democracy.
We work with educators throughout their careers to improve their effectiveness in the classroom, as well as their students' academic performance and civic learning. Through a rigorous investigation of the events that led to the Holocaust, as well as other recent examples of genocide and mass violence, students in a Facing History class learn to combat prejudice with compassion, indifference with participation, and myth and misinformation with knowledge.
Facing History’s impact in supporting teachers’ effectiveness and promoting students’ academic development and civic learning has been demonstrated in more than one hundred studies by independent researchers and Facing History evaluators.
Since it was founded in 1976 in Brookline, Massachusetts, Facing History and Ourselves has grown from an innovative course taught in a single school district to an international organization with more than 150 staff members in Chicago, Cleveland, Denver, London, Los Angeles, Memphis, New England, New York, the San Francisco Bay Area, and Toronto, and partnerships in Northern Ireland, Israel, Rwanda, China and South Africa. These offices and partnerships, as well as projects throughout North America and around the world, support a network of more than 29,000 trained educators who reach nearly two million young people annually.
See our most recent Annual Report for another look at our work.
Learn More
| Where We Work | Find our offices and programs in the U.S. and internationally. |
| Measuring Our Reach | Key numbers on how many teachers, students, and communities we reach. |
| Evaluation & Impact | Rigorous research and evaluation demonstrates the effectiveness of our work. |
| Our Supporters | The generosity of individuals, corporations, agencies, and foundations makes our work possible. |
| Careers & Internships | Explore opportunities at Facing History and Ourselves |
| Teaching Award | The Margot Stern Strom Teaching Award supports dedicated teachers and their ideas for innovative projects. |
Who We Are
Facing History and Ourselves delivers classroom strategies, resources and lessons that inspire young people to take responsibility for their world. Internationally recognized for our quality and effectiveness, Facing History harnesses the power of the Internet and partners with school systems, universities, and ministries of education worldwide.
Each year we reach more than two million students through our global network of more than 29,000 trained educators, staff, adjunct faculty and international fellows, who facilitate hundreds of seminars and workshops annually, and we reach the public through community events and extensive online resources. In 2010, our website received more than 740,000 visits from people in 215 countries and territories, with more than 2.5 million page views.
At the heart of our work is the resource book Facing History and Ourselves: Holocaust and Human Behavior, which explores the consequences of hatred. Students all over the world learn to recognize bigotry and indifference. They also meet exemplars of courage and compassion in the face of injustice and see that their own daily choices can have major impacts and perhaps even be a critical link to a safer future.
Facing History's work is based on the premise that we need to — and can — teach civic responsibility, tolerance, and social action to young people, as a way of fostering moral adulthood. If we do not educate students for dignity and equity, then we have failed both them and ourselves.
We believe that students are moral philosophers who are able and willing to think about tough moral and ethical dilemmas in surprisingly sophisticated ways. Our materials and our approach help students with a wide range of abilities and learning styles understand that their choices and actions matter, and that young people can, and should, be agents of change. We provide teachers with the tools they need to educate students so that they can act on their knowledge.
"I faced history one day and found myself." - Facing History and Ourselves Student
Mission Statement
Facing History and Ourselves is an international educational and professional development organization whose mission is to engage students of diverse backgrounds in an examination of racism, prejudice, and antisemitism in order to promote the development of a more humane and informed citizenry. By studying the historical development of the Holocaust and other examples of genocide, students make the essential connection between history and the moral choices they confront in their own lives.
What We Do
Professional Development
We offer professional development for educators that helps develop top notch skills in teaching challenging civic and historical topics. Our programs range from one week seminars to longer online courses, and from single day and afterschool workshops to in-service training and individual consultations.
Publications and Resources
Our study guides, resource books, and other educator resources provide innovative, relevant materials for use in the classroom and the wider community.
Pedagogy Research and Development
Our research links theory to practice through new scholarship, partnerships, and pilot projects.
Community Engagement
Our community events create opportunities for adults and students to discuss and reflect on civic engagement, individual and collective responsibility, and tolerance.
Special Initiatives
Building on our core programs, products, and services, our special initiatives extend our mission more deeply and widely.
Additional Resources
Current Annual Report | Past Annual Reports
Profiles – Extraordinary Teachers, Upstanders, Leaders
Margot’s Journey – About Facing History and Ourselves Founder and Executive Director Margot Stern Strom
Dear Teacher – A famous letter to teachers from a concentration camp survivor evokes Facing History's mission
