Mobile museum from Museum of Tolerance visits Hillview Middle School
The mobile museum from Los Angeles-based Museum of Tolerance recently spent three days at Hillview Middle School. As part of a larger district effort to increase student belonging and build awareness, the mobile museum, in partnership with San Francisco-based Jewish Family and Children’s Services Holocaust Center, provided lessons about Anne Frank to all sixth graders as well as professional development to all teachers on talking about hard subjects using art and social-emotional awareness.The age-appropriate student content is aligned to California standards.
These mobile museums launched in October 2024 in several states and allow the wide range of exhibits available at the Museum of Tolerance to reach locations across the county.
The Menlo Park City School District is proactively engaging students in different ways to learn about and address hate speech, through developing empathy among students to create and sustain a safe and inclusive culture. In addition to the holocaust presentations, every 2nd-8th grade student in MPCSD received a developmentally appropriate discussion directly from their school leaders on what hate speech is, how our words matter, and what is acceptable at school.
The district has committed to direct parent communication about every verified hate speech incident at the middle school. Hillview is actively engaged in becoming a No Place for Hate through utilizing the model from ADL. Hillview’s principal, Danielle O’Brien, is at the center of this meaningful progress and it has been through her commitment and planning to build these new partnerships and initiatives at MPCSD’s one middle school.
Together these efforts are helping MPCSD schools recognize and affirm all students, while also providing clear expectations, transparent communication with families, and addressing incidents that do occur in a swift, serious, compassionate, and restorative manner.
“This events is part of an ongoing commitment to our district’s vision to educate and empower students in an effort to strengthen understanding and grow student belonging,” said Superintendent Gracia.”We hope to be a model of how to lean in during challenging times, seek to understand and then work together as a community to create meaningful learning opportunities for students resulting in lasting change.”
Pictured are Morgan Blum Schneider, director of the Jewish family and children’s services holocaust center, Isabel Agustin, district representative for California state Senator Josh Becker, and Superintendent Kristen Gracia
