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Irvin Moreno-Rodriguez was announced as Sarah and Sam Shawver Holocaust Resource Center exist Stockton University. Moreno-Rodriguez is the first Hispanic to serve as director of one of New Jersey’s 30 Holocaust centers
“The path to a better future is through education. Holocaust education can really teach students that in this hard, sometimes bleak world where everyone is yelling at each other and no one can get along, education can be the solution to the problem,” Moreno-Rodriguez said.
Moreno-Rodriguez, 30, of Pleasantville, has served as the center’s assistant director and a member of the New Jersey Holocaust Education Commission since 2021. In addition to earning a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Stockton, he also earned a master’s degree in Holocaust and genocide studies from the university.
“The Sarah and Sam Shawver Holocaust Resource Center Executive Committee is very proud to have Owen Moreno-Rodriguez succeed the late Gail Rosenthal as the Center’s Executive Director. A graduate of Stockton University and Gail’s assistant, Owen brings many years of experience and great continuity to his position,” said Sarah and Sam Shawver’s son, Leo Shawver, a member of the HRC Executive Committee. “As a scholar and teacher in the field, Owen has a special understanding of the Holocaust and genocide studies that he imparts to his students and the many who participate in the Center’s programs and workshops.”
Moreno-Rodriguez said this special understanding stems from his life as a first-generation student whose parents immigrated to the U.S. from Mexico. The stories of Holocaust survivors who fled to the U.S. and Latin American countries resonated with him.
“The Holocaust is a warning of what can happen if you don’t respect other people. What can happen if you really start spreading lies and rumors and misinformation and creating fear and xenophobia against other people and against immigrants,” he said. “It’s very much a warning of what can happen, but it’s also a reminder that in the darkest moments of history, you still have the light and the willingness to go out and save lives.”
Shawver and Moreno-Rodriguez knew it would be difficult to succeed Rosenthal, who joined the Holocaust Resource Center in 1991 and served as director until her death on Oct. 13, 2023. She was a lifelong mentor and influence for Moreno-Rodriguez — even helping him get a scholarship to Stockton University.
Moreno-Rodriguez has worked with Rosenthal at the center since 2018, and while she was a student at Stockton from 2011 to 2015, Moreno-Rodriguez often volunteered there and served as an informal tour guide for outside groups. Shawver is confident in Moreno-Rodriguez’s ability to lead the Holocaust Resource Center into the future.
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