About The 1948 Project

In 2016, two Massachusetts educators, Justin Bilton and Jason Stark, started a genocide studies course at Essex North Shore Technical and Agricultural School in Hathorne, MA. Since then, they have educated hundreds of students in project-based education on genocide, human rights, international law and intervention. Now, their goal is to spread their model to schools across the country by offering curriculum design support and professional development for educators across the country.

The founders of The 1948 Project advocated for new genocide education bills in Massachusetts. H.692 and S.327, which mandate genocide education in the commonwealth for grades 8-12. In conjunction with the spirit of this law, Jason and Justin hope to help schools in the state implement effective and meaningful genocide education.

The goal of The 1948 Project is to aid teachers and school administrations in creating and implementing genocide education using a sound methodology, student-driven projects, survivor testimony, and experiential learning opportunities. We are available for workshops, presentations, and consulting to help your school get your genocide course up and running.

Meet the Co-founders

  • Justin Bilton

    Justin has been an educator at Essex North Shore Agricultural and Technical School for eight years where he has co-created a Genocide Studies course that has been featured in The Atlantic and The Hechinger Report. He is an alum of Salem State University with a bachelor’s in English and a Master’s in Teaching English; he also attended the 2013 and 2021 Belfer Conferences at the United States Holocaust Museum. In the summer of 2022, he will travel to Yerevan, Armenia to take part in the first annual Genocide Education Project’s conference on the Armenian Genocide.

    He values Genocide Education as an instrument that provides students with the critical thinking, analytical, and research skills to understand how democracies fail and to stop hate and racism from spreading.

  • Jason P. Stark

    Jason has been interested in genocide education his whole life: his grandmother escaped Nazi Germany in April of 1939, only to have her parents, and brother murdered during the Holocaust. He holds a B.A. in Behavioral Sciences from the University of Maine at Machias and a Master’s of Education with a History concentration from Salem State University. He attended United State Holocaust Memorial Museum’s Belfer Conference in 2016.

    The Genocide Studies course he created with Justin Bilton is informed by his passion for historical analysis integrated with social justice education and awareness. He believes in cultivating empathy in students in order to strive for a more just future.