Meet the interns: Putting knowledge to use

Interview with Naama Haviv
Naama Haviv '00 is a firm advocate of active learning, and describes the several internships that she has incorporated into her undergraduate and graduate studies as being some of her most valuable experiences.

Naama is an example of the many students who enrich Clark's campus by bringing to it an international background, wide-ranging interests, and determination to make a difference in the world. Born in Israel, Naama grew up in Los Angeles and includes Syrian and Yemeni elements in her family background. Since receiving her B.A. in history and M.A. in education from Clark, she has enrolled in Clark's Ph.D. Program in Holocaust and Genocide Studies. In a recent interview, summarized below, Naama discussed at length her internship experiences and how she came eventually to focus on the study of genocide prevention.

What attracted you to come to Clark as an undergraduate and how did you become involved in genocide studies?

I came to Clark because the communication and culture major sounded so interesting. I grew up in Los Angeles where communications is a big deal. Most of the communication programs that I considered weren't as comprehensive as Clark's.

But as a first-year student at Clark, I took a media theory class and realized it wasn't for me! One nice part about Clark is its system of required perspectives courses. So I used my perspectives requirements to figure out what I wanted to study. After awhile I realized that the courses that most interested me were in history. So after long debate--I had seven different major declaration forms filled out and signed by different advisors!--I decided to become a history major. Then I realized I was taking a lot of courses in Holocaust and genocide studies and international law. During my senior year, Dr. Edward Kissi, a remarkable visiting professor in HGS, really piqued my interest in comparative genocide.

I understand that you were selected to be a Holocaust and Genocide Studies summer intern between your junior and senior years. Could you describe that experience?

That was great! I worked in the cataloging department at the Shoah Foundation in Los Angeles. The Foundation has videotaped about 55,000 oral testimonies from the Holocaust, each lasting between six hours and several days.

While videotaping the testimonies is a huge undertaking, indexing and cataloging the videotapes is an immense project on its own. The cataloging department is huge. While the filming of the testimonies is outsourced to independent filmmakers around Los Angeles, the cataloging is done in house. Cataloguers sit at computers watching videotapes. Every time an event, theme, date, or name of a place or person is mentioned, the cataloguer writes it down.

But it isn't possible to include everything in the index, and my job was to help determine what was important enough to be included. Using the internet, I tried to find out as much as possible about obscure places, people, events, etc. For example, I might try to find out everything I could about a shtetl mentioned in a testimony. How big was it? How many people lived there? What happened there? Was there a memory book or a funeral organization that keep records of births and deaths? Whatever I could find would be used in determining if that particular shtetl would be included in the index.

The work was fascinating. I researched everything from tiny shtetls in Poland to Jewish communities in India, to Italian Jewish immigration to America. I was actively putting to work the knowledge I had gained from my courses at Clark. Without that background, I wouldn't have known where to find the information I needed. And, without the Shoah Foundation experience, I don't think I would have understood how my knowledge could be put to use and what good it would do anybody. Genocide is such a heavy and emotional topic. If I'm not doing something with my knowledge about it, it just sits and simmers. It can really tear you apart. That's probably why I want to do active work with genocide rather than historical work.

I understand the Shoah Foundation did not pay you for your help.

That's right. If I hadn't received funding from HGS, I never would have been able to intern there. I'd worked since I was 15 to make sure I could go to college. I worked every summer, 40-50 hours a week, and saved every dime to go back to school.

Clark was so flexible in helping me get the internship, helping me find an internship that really suited me. They were flexible with travel expenses as well. So it was really fantastic. Shelly Tenenbaum, director of the HGS concentration, went above and beyond the call to help me. I had to find an internship in order to apply for the funding, but as a college junior I had no clue how to do that. But Professor Tenenbaum had a book of different Holocaust organizations all over the country and called the Shoah Foundation on my behalf. I remember she had to go to New York to be with her mother who was ill, and she called the Shoah Foundation from New York! I was amazed at how much she was willing to help me to make it work. She made it happen.

What did you do after you finished your B.A?

I decided to take advantage of Clark's 5th year free program and earn my master's degree in education. I didn't feel ready to decide on a Ph.D. program, but the 5th year option gave me the chance to get my teaching certification. I knew that certification would be a huge asset, whatever I decided to do, and I knew I'd want to teach at some point. The education courses were great, and my student teaching experience was phenomenal. I loved it. I taught world history to 10th graders at South High here in Worcester and I had the greatest kids. The 5th year program was a phenomenal opportunity.

After I completed my M.A., I worked for Dynamy, Inc., a not-for-profit experiential educational organization located here in Worcester. For two years I served as an advisor to their internship program. It was great to work there and encourage students to learn from their own work experience.

I applied to many places for graduate school, but frankly, Clark was the only place I could study comparative genocide: the Holocaust and Genocide Studies Program is the only one of its kind in the world. I was hesitant to apply at first because I'd earned both my B.A. and M.A. at Clark. But HGS is a completely different program at the graduate level. I've gotten such remarkable opportunities here that I can't believe I even considered going anywhere else. I've been to a couple of conferences on genocide studies, and everyone I talk to in the field immediately recognizes Clark. We graduate students refer to HGS as "The Center," and at any conference, it really is "The Center." I'm glad I'm here.

Have you been involved in other internships besides the one at the Shoah Foundation?

I have. While working at Dynamy, I went to hear Dr. Charles Jacob, founder of the American Anti-Slavery Group, speak at Clark. I was shocked by what I learned about slavery taking place around the world. At the time I knew nothing about slavery. At the end of presentation, I told Jacob that I was interested in volunteering that summer for two months. I served as his research assistant and helped to write some articles.

This past summer I interned at the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) in Jerusalem. MEMRI translates material from Arab media into a number of different languages. I was interested in working there, because for my research I need to understand what's going on in the Arab press. I worked with MEMRI's president and he helped me with my research. He's a contact beyond all contacts. He knows everyone, which is going to be so crucial to my research. He's already talked to people that I need to meet.

What are you hoping to do when you complete your Ph.D.?

For my dissertation I'm trying to develop a model of precursors to genocide, that is, the kinds of conditions that tend to precede a genocidal event. When I finish I'd like to do active work in either genocide education or prevention, perhaps with a non-governmental organization (NGO) or human rights education organization. There are also some good genocide prevention projects being started.