Ashes in the Snow Screening and Workshop

partner with Harvard University's Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies; Ms. Ruta Sepetys, the #1 New York Times and internationally bestselling author of Between Shades of Gray; Mr. Marius Markevicius, director of Ashes in the Snow; and Penguin Young Readers to deliver a workshop to assist educators in teaching about the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact and the Baltic deportations during WWII through the incorporation of the novel and film.
You are invited to a screening of the film Ashes in the Snow, the adaptation of the bestselling YA novel Between Shades of Gray; a conversation with Ruta; and a workshop focused on how you can use the movie and book to illustrate the historical significance of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, the Lithuanian deportation during WWII, and how they relate to current events. Workshop attendees will also have the chance to have a conversation with the Foundation’s Senior Fellow in Polish Studies, Dr. Włozimierz Batóg, who grew up in communist Poland and has directly experienced the transition to freedom.
This workshop will be particularly interesting to educators (and others) who engage and work with immigrant communities.
Based on the successful approach of its National Seminar for Middle and High School Educators (registration is now open, but hurry as space is limited!), the workshop provides content knowledge, pedagogic support, and peer-to-peer sharing to empower teachers in their classroom.
The workshop agenda includes:
* Welcome
* Screening of Ashes in the Snow
* Q&A with Ms. Sepetys
* Workshop on Between Shades of Gray and Ashes in the Snow as tools for teaching about the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact and the Deportations led by Dr. Bessette
* Thank you

About Ruta Sepetys
Ruta Sepetys is an internationally acclaimed author of historical fiction published in over sixty countries and more than forty languages. Sepetys is considered a “crossover” novelist as her books are read by both teens and adults worldwide. Her novels, Between Shades of Gray and Out of the Easyare both New York Times bestsellers and international bestsellers. Her books have won or been shortlisted for over forty book prizes, are included on over forty state reading lists, and are currently in development for film and television.
Ruta is the daughter of a Lithuanian refugee. Born in Michigan, she was raised in a family of artists, readers, and music lovers. She was recently bestowed the Cross of the Knight of the Order by the President of Lithuania for her contributions to education and memory preservation. She is intensely proud to be Lithuanian, even if that means she has a name no one can pronounce.

About Dr. Włozimierz Batóg
Dr. Batóg is a Professor of American History at Jan Kochanowski University in Kielce. His past publications include monographs, articles, and book chapters on the Communist Party of the USA, Students for a Democratic Society, and the 1960s campus unrest. He is currently working on a book about Communist Party infiltration and influence among the Polish diaspora of Chicago and Detroit during the 1930s and 1940s.

About the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation
The Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation is an educational and human rights nonprofit organization authorized by a unanimous Congressional Act, which was signed as Public Law 103-199 by President William J. Clinton on December 17, 1993. From 2003 to 2009, President George W. Bush was Honorary Chairman of the Foundation. On June 12, 2007, he dedicated the Victims of Communism Memorial in Washington, D.C.
The Foundation is excited to partner with Ms. Ruta Sepetys, the #1 New York Times and internationally bestselling author of Between Shades of Gray; and Mr. Marius Markevicius, director of Ashes in the Snow; as well as Penguin Young Readers to deliver this series of local workshops to assist educators in teaching about the Baltic deportations through the incorporation of the novel and film.