SANDY SPRINGS, GA — A local educator has returned home with powerful insights and renewed purpose after participating in an intensive Holocaust study program in Europe. Judy Schancupp, a teacher with the Georgia Commission on the Holocaust, was one of only 12 educators nationwide selected for the prestigious program.

The immersive experience took participants to key historical sites across Europe, offering firsthand accounts and deeper understanding of the Holocaust’s far-reaching impact, far beyond the borders of Germany.

“Most people don’t realize that in the Netherlands, 75% of the Jewish population was murdered,” Schancupp said, emphasizing the depths of the Holocaust’s reach. One of the most striking revelations for her was the story of Denmark. “It was a collective rescue of the Danish people, getting them on fishing boats and taking them over to Sweden,” she explained. “Over 7,000 Jews were saved because they were seen as fellow countrymen.”

Schancupp described each day of the program as transformative. “Every day was an amazing day,” she said, noting that the experience was not only educational but deeply emotional, especially as antisemitism continues to rise globally.

“We’re experiencing antisemitism like we’ve never experienced for a very long time,” she said. “The importance is to bring information back to our students, especially at a time like this.”

With Holocaust survivors aging and firsthand testimonies becoming rarer, Schancupp believes education is more critical than ever. She’s committed to sharing what she learned with her students and community, hoping to combat denial and indifference with truth and understanding.

“This history must be taught, because some people still believe it didn’t happen,” she said.

WSB’s Lisa Nicholas contributed to this story