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'''Joseph Andrew. Olzacki, Ed.D. )'''

Joseph Andrew Olzacki,(born August 23, 1961) a native of East Hampton, Connecticut, is an American scholar educator, human rights activist and world genocide lecturer, Identity Project - What Makes You, You. and is most recently the Director of the Rwandan Teacher Education Program - a partnership between the Rwandan Ministry of Education (Kigali, Rwanda) and the University of Hartford, (West Hartford, Connecticut) Office of the President. Currently, Olzacki sits on the board of directors for The Voices of Hope, Farmington, Connecticut and has served as a past board member on the Hartford Conservatory and the Hartford Symphony boards of directors, Hartford, Connecticut.

Olzacki graduated from the University of Hartford in 1985 and earned two bachelor's degrees in Government from the College of Arts & Sciences and Conducting from the world renowned Hartt School of Music, Dance & Drama. West Hartford Connecticut. He also earned both a Master's degree in education and a doctorate in education leadership from the university's College of Education with a focus on curricular change in secondary and higher education.

Olzacki's work with students in Connecticut is best described as focused on human rights and the prevention of Genocide through lessons of the Holocaust. In 2003, he created the award winning IDENTITY Project, This project, focused on educating minority secondary students on lessons from the Holocaust and other world Genocides as a means to promote human rights. spent 15 years in public education at various levels before leaving public education in late 2013 to combine his knowledge of education curriculum and administration and Holocaust/Genocide education through his creation of the Rwandan Teacher Education Program. Working closely with the Rwandan Ministry of Education, Minister Silas Lwakabamba and Rwandan Education Permanent Secretary Sharon Haba, they created the program to address the needs for improvement in the education sector - teaching and learning for Rwandan Teachers in the areas of education methodology, English language teaching, technology and peace initiatives (Help Increase the Peace Program, Friends Meeting). The Rwandan Teacher Education Program (RTEP) educated over 14,000 Rwandan educators.

As an addendum to his work in Rwanda, Olzacki, working closely with Rabbi Philip Lazowski, he became highly involved with the adoption of Connecticut Senate Bill 45 AN ACT CONCERNING THE INCLUSION OF HOLOCAUST AND GENOCIDE EDUCATION AND AWARENESS IN THE SOCIAL STUDIES CURRICULUM that was subsequently adopted by unanimous vote of both houses of the Connecticut State Legislature. Olzacki has lead panel discussions on The Rwandan Genocide at Yale University and in Holocaust Education at the University of Hartford.

AWARDS Olzacki has been awarded the prestigious Paul Harris Award for his work with Genocide/Holocaust education and minority youth, Humanitarian of the Year by the University of Hartford, Educator of the Year 2010 by the Harford Symphony Orchestra and was announced as "A Connecticut Mover and Shaker" by the Jewish Ledger, Connecticut.

https://www.courant.com/news/connecticut/hc-rwandan-teacher-education-program-20140729-story.html http://www.jewishledger.com/2011/12/movers-shakers-a-look-back-2/ http://www.jewishledger.com/2012/06/what-makes-you-you-the-identity-project-gains-new-momentum/ https://www.cga.ct.gov/2018/JFR/s/2018SB-00452-R00ED-JFR.htm