A Century of Genocide is the focus of Wayne State University's sixth annual Conference on the Holocaust and Armenian Genocide slated for Wednesday, April 14, in the McGregor Memorial Conference Center at WSU.

Keynote speaker Helen Fein, director of the Institute for the Study of Genocide, will address participants at 9:15 a.m. and discuss "Looking Back at the Armenian Genocide and the Holocaust: Origins, Responses, Postwar Judgments and Connections."

Fein, an associate of the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, has written numerous articles and several books on genocide including Accounting for Genocide: National Responses and Jewish Victimization During the Holocaust and Genocide: A Sociological Perspective. Fein was a founder and first president of the international Association of Genocide Scholars.

Other morning events include a musical performance and a panel discussion on "Teaching Strategies: Past, Present and Future" featuring the following teachers: Jason Kaye, Pioneer Middle School, Plymouth-Canton; Joshua Leopold, Osborne High School, Detroit; Anahit Toumajan, Alex and Marie Manoogian School, Southfield; Marcella Warner, Harper Woods HighSchool; Scott Warrow, Groves High School, Birmingham; and Sheryl Young, Berkley High School. The panelists will discuss how they place the Armenian Genocide and Holocaust in their class curriculum.

After lunch another panel discussion will cover student perspectives on the legacy of the Holocaust and Armenian Genocide. Students include Jennifer Ludwig and David Zaks of Berkley High School; Seda Melkumyan, Alex and Marie Manoogian School, Southfield; Hy Safran, Groves High School, Birmingham; and Alison Ward of Harper Woods High School.

Tickets to the conference, which includes lunch, cost $25. Reservations are needed by April 7. To register, or for more information, call WSU Community Affairs at (313) 577-2246.