The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors has approved a $2 million budget for a Holocaust Education Center in Downtown Phoenix. Scheduled to open in April 2027, the center was proposed by Vice Chairman Thomas Galvin, who allocated the funding from his portion of the county’s Community Solutions Funding.
The Arizona Holocaust Education Center, officially named the Hilton Family Holocaust Education Center, will be the first institution of its kind in Arizona. It is expected to attract around 50,000 visitors annually and will feature immersive exhibits spread across two floors. "The Holocaust was an atrocity and it is important that we teach our children and future generations about what occurred to make sure it never happens again," Galvin commented, as per a statement released by Maricopa County.
This funding will support free entry for local public school students, allowing them access to the center. It is part of a broader initiative to provide Maricopa County's public schools with the curriculum required to meet Arizona's educational standards, which mandate Holocaust education at least twice from 7th to 12th grade.
Steve Hilton, Project Chair and Board Member at the Arizona Jewish Historical Society, expressed gratitude for this investment: "The Hilton Family Holocaust Education Center will take a multifaceted, experiential approach to presenting the history and legacy of the Holocaust," Hilton said, detailing that students are to literally move through the galleries, embarking on a physical and emotional journey aimed at galvanizing them to act and "Repair the World," according to a release from the Maricopa County.
