Dr. Paul Neinkamp of Fort Hays State University (FHSU) visited and spoke to Vanessa Schumacher’s sophomore Honors English II class on Jan. 15.

Schumacher is teaching a unit on the Holocaust and accompanying literature.

“Dr. Nienkamp teaches a workshop every year on the Holocaust, and I knew he would be able to bring a unique lesson on the historical context that led to the rise of the Nazi party and ultimately the Holocaust that I couldn’t,” Schumacher said.

Schumacher said she worked in the FHSU history department as a student and learned the importance of historical context in literature.

Schumacher said the impact of Neinkamp’s presentation depends on the class but believes the visit went well.

“From my viewpoint, the students enjoyed listening to Dr. Nienkamp’s knowledge of World War II and the Holocaust,” Schumacher said.

One activity Neinkamp introduced included real pictures taken from 1933-1945 and had the students choose which ones most closely told the narrative of the Holocaust.

“Dr. Nienkamp’s visit to our classroom hopefully helped the students open their eyes to the inconceivable atrocities of the Holocaust, learn vital historical context for the books we are going to be reading and an understanding that people make choices and those choices make history,” Schumacher said.

21kboyle@usd489.com