II 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1273 

To require a study on Holocaust education efforts of States, local educational 

agencies, and public elementary and secondary schools, and for other 

purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

APRIL 25, 2023 

Ms. ROSEN (for herself and Mr. LANKFORD) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To require a study on Holocaust education efforts of States, 

local educational agencies, and public elementary and 

secondary schools, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Holocaust Education 

5 and Antisemitism Lessons Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. STUDY AND REPORT ON HOLOCAUST EDUCATION. 

7 (a) STUDY.—Beginning not later than 180 days after 

8 the date of enactment of this Act, the Director of the 

9 United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (referred to 


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1 in this Act as the ‘‘Director’’) shall conduct a study on 

2 Holocaust education efforts in States, local educational 

3 agencies, and public elementary schools and secondary 

4 schools. Such study shall include an examination of— 

5 (1) all States; 

6 (2) a nationally representative sample of local 

7 educational agencies; and 

8 (3) a representative sample of public elementary 

9 and secondary schools served by the local edu10 cational agencies being studied. 

11 (b) ELEMENTS.—In conducting the study under sub12 section (a), the Director shall— 

13 (1) determine whether States and local edu14 cational agencies being studied require Holocaust 

15 education as part of the curriculum taught in public 

16 elementary schools and secondary schools; 

17 (2) identify States and local educational agen18 cies being studied that have optional Holocaust edu19 cation as part of the curriculum taught in public ele20 mentary schools and secondary schools; 

21 (3) identify each State’s standards and the re22 quirements of the local educational agencies being 

23 studied relating to Holocaust education and summa24 rize the status of the implementation of such stand25 ards and requirements, including— 


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1 (A) the existence of a centralized appa2 ratus at the State or local level that collects and 

3 disseminates Holocaust education curricula and 

4 materials; 

5 (B) the existence of Holocaust education 

6 professional development opportunities for pre7 service and in-service teachers; 

8 (C) the involvement of informal edu9 cational organizations in implementing Holo10 caust education, including museums and cul11 tural centers; 

12 (D) an assessment of the challenges or 

13 gaps that may prevent educators from fulfilling 

14 Holocaust education requirements; 

15 (E) the identification of training and re16 sources needed to support educators teaching 

17 about the Holocaust; and 

18 (F) the adoption of United States Holo19 caust Memorial Museum resources by— 

20 (i) entities at the State or local level 

21 that disseminate Holocaust education cur22 ricula; or 

23 (ii) local Holocaust museums and cen24 ters; 

25 (4) determine— 


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1 (A) the range of intended outcomes from a 

2 Holocaust education unit at the State and local 

3 educational agency level; and 

4 (B) the methods teachers are using that 

5 result in successfully achieving intended learn6 ing outcomes, which may include— 

7 (i) in-class discussion; 

8 (ii) educational activities conducted 

9 outside the classroom, including homework 

10 assignments and experiential learning in11 volving State and local organizations, such 

12 as museums and cultural centers; 

13 (iii) project based learning; 

14 (iv) educational materials and activi15 ties that are developmentally appropriate 

16 and taught through a trauma-informed 

17 lens; and 

18 (v) integration of lessons from the 

19 Holocaust across the curriculum and 

20 throughout the school year; 

21 (5) identify the types of instructional materials 

22 used to teach students about the Holocaust, includ23 ing the use of primary source material; 

24 (6) identify— 


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1 (A) in what disciplines the Holocaust is 

2 being taught; 

3 (B) the amount of time allotted in the re4 quired curriculum to teach about the Holocaust; 

5 and 

6 (C) the comprehensiveness of the Holo7 caust education curriculum taught in public ele8 mentary schools and secondary schools, as indi9 cated by the extent to which the curriculum ad10 dresses all elements and aspects of the Holo11 caust and is based on reliable educational re12 sources, such as resources provided by the 

13 United States Holocaust Memorial Museum; 

14 and 

15 (7) identify the approaches used by public ele16 mentary schools and secondary schools to assess out17 comes using traditional and nontraditional assess18 ments, including assessments of— 

19 (A) students’ knowledge of the Holocaust; 

20 and 

21 (B) students’ ability to identify and ana22 lyze antisemitism, bigotry, hate, and genocide in 

23 historical and contemporary contexts. 

24 (c) REPORT.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Following the completion of 

2 the study under subsection (a), the Director shall 

3 prepare and submit to Congress a report on the re4 sults of the study. 

5 (2) DEADLINE FOR SUBMITTAL.—The report 

6 under paragraph (1) shall be submitted not later 

7 than the earlier of— 

8 (A) 180 days after the completion of the 

9 study under subsection (a); or 

10 (B) 3 years after the date of enactment of 

11 this Act. 

12 (d) DEFINITIONS.—In this Act: 

13 (1) ESEA TERMS.—The terms ‘‘elementary 

14 school’’, ‘‘local educational agency’’, ‘‘secondary 

15 school’’, and ‘‘State’’ have the meanings given those 

16 terms in section 8101 of the Elementary and Sec17 ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801). 

18 (2) HOLOCAUST.—The term ‘‘Holocaust’’ has 

19 the meaning given that term in section 3 of the 

20 Never Again Education Act (Public Law 116–141; 

21 36 U.S.C. 2301 note). 

22 (3) HOLOCAUST EDUCATION.—The term ‘‘Holo23 caust education’’ means educational activities that 

24 are specifically intended— 


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1 (A) to improve students’ awareness and 

2 understanding of the Holocaust; 

3 (B) to educate students on the lessons of 

4 the Holocaust as a means to raise awareness 

5 about the importance of preventing genocide, 

6 hate, and bigotry against any group of people; 

7 and 

8 (C) to study the history of antisemitism, 

9 its deep historical roots, the use of conspiracy 

10 theories and propaganda that target the Jewish 

11 people, and the shape-shifting nature of anti12 semitism over time. 

13 (4) PROJECT BASED LEARNING.—The term 

14 ‘‘project based learning’’ means a teaching method 

15 through which students learn by actively engaging in 

16 real-world and personally meaningful projects. 

Æ 


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