Joint Service Academies Mass Atrocity Prevention Symposium

About the Symposium

April 2024
US Holocaust Memorial Museum, Washington, DC

The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, the United States Military Academy’s Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies, the United States Naval Academy, the US Air Force Academy, and the US Coast Guard Academy annually co-host the Joint Service Academies Mass Atrocity Prevention Symposium (JSAMAPS) held at the US Holocaust Memorial Museum.

The focal point of the symposium is the students, who share their original research on issues related to the Holocaust, genocide, and mass atrocity prevention with an audience of their peers. Interspersed between student panels are presentations by scholars, experts, and practitioners from US government agencies, such as the Department of Defense and Department of State, non-governmental organizations working in the field of atrocity prevention, and the US Holocaust Memorial Museum. These presentations energize and advance conversations at the academies concerning humane and effective leadership in an age of continued mass atrocity and genocide.

The symposium is also inviting applications for student panelists. Panelists will share their original research on issues related to mass atrocity with an audience of their peers. 

Symposium Goals

• To further participants’ understanding of the Holocaust and genocide with particular emphasis on knowledge relevant to military officers
• To clarify the value of Holocaust and genocide-related content in the professional development of future military officers
• To build awareness of current global efforts to enhance the ability to prevent and respond to genocide
• To enhance the relationships among service academy cadets and midshipmen, and to enable them to contribute to the continued development of the US Government’s atrocity prevention and response initiatives

Previous Speakers

Previous symposium speakers include: Acting Secretary of the Army, Department of Defense Senior Advisor for International Humanitarian Policy, Policy Advisor at the State Department’s Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operations, Managing Director at Strategy for Humanity, Staff from Auschwitz Institute for Peace and Reconciliation, Senator Richard Blumenthal, Founder and Executive Director of Over Zero, US Holocaust Memorial Museum historians and experts.

Contact Us

Please contact Yael Friedman at yfriedman@ushmm.org with any questions.

Registering on this website secures your participation in the symposium, but does not serve as clearance with your institution. Please make sure to clear travel and participation through your appropriate institution.

The organizers are indebted to the Gottesman, Kreitenberg, and Chase Families for their support on behalf of the Service Academies and the May Family Foundation for its support on behalf of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. We also thank the United States Military Academy, the United States Naval Academy, United States Air Force Academy and United States Coast Guard Academy for their cooperation.