Voice of Witness

The Voice of Witness Summer Matching Challenge just ended this week, and we’re happy to announce that we met our fundraising goal and then some raising $37,000 total! These funds will directly support our book projects, education outreach, and core capacity–all furthering our mission of fostering more nuanced, empathetic understanding of contemporary human rights crises through story.

On behalf of everyone on the Voice of Witness staff, the narrators in our book series, and the educators we work with, THANK YOU! 

Report from Amplifying Unheard Voices 2014

by Natalie Catasús

On the first day of Amplifying Unheard Voices, Education Program Director Cliff Mayotte posed a big question: why does telling stories matter? It was a question our group would return to over and over again during the four day oral history training run by the Voice of Witness Education Program.

Cliff and Claire, the Education Program Associate, spoke to a room of 30 participants, a new record for the summer training. The crowd who had gathered at Berkeley High School for the event came from an incredible array of backgrounds. Educators, activists, writers, artists, journalists, and community organizers traveled from all over the Bay Area and California, and some even came from as far as Texas and New Hampshire. While some were new to oral history and others were more experienced, all of the participants brought their curiosity to the table, excited to learn from each other’s work and exchange ideas about the practical and ethical aspects of teaching and producing oral history.

Click here to read more.

The Voice of Witness Education Program is seeking a part-time intern from July – December 2014. If you have the availability and are interested in gaining skills related to oral history and education, we encourage you to apply!

The Education Program Intern’s duties will include:
• Administrative support (creating and keeping databases, generating reports from survey data, making flyers and pdfs for our programs)
• Social media support (Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, Google Analytics, etc.)
• Assisting education staff with upcoming community book, Say it Forward (working with case study facilitators, project organization, and copyediting)
• Compiling data on teachers and students served, as well as facilitating program assessments and evaluations.
• Assisting education staff with workshops and trainings (participation, set-up and breakdown, preparation, etc.)
• Conducting curricular research for upcoming book titles, creating supplementary educational materials, promoting resources

We are committed to providing a fulfilling and educational experience for our intern, and welcome feedback about each candidate’s specific interests as they relate to the internship. The position is 10 hours per week and we are able to sign off on course credit.

Please send a cover letter and resume to Claire Kiefer, Education Program Associate.