UVA Master of Public Safety Students Join Global Delegation to Study Policing Ethics at Auschwitz
For the students taking the University of Virginia’s Master of Public Safety program, the elective course PSPS 5500: Policing in Nazi Germany is never just a history lesson. This April, a new delegation of public safety leaders will travel to Krakow, Poland, to walk the grounds of Auschwitz-Birkenau. They will stand where law enforcement officers of the past facilitated one of the darkest chapters in human history, and they will ask themselves the most difficult question a protector can face: How did we let this happen?
But the 2026 iteration of "Operationalizing Never Again" is not simply a repeat of the past. With a larger international coalition, new curriculum partnerships, and an expanded itinerary that now reaches into the heart of Berlin, this year’s program promises to be a comprehensive examination of policing ethics for the Center for Public Safety and Justice.
Student Perspectives: Connecting Historical Lessons to Modern Policing Challenges
The true weight of this course is best understood through the students themselves. In the lead-up to their departure, the 2026 cohort – comprised of officers, federal agents and those working and supporting public safety - gathered to discuss their motivations. The room was diverse, not just in geography, but in perspective.
For some, the connection is immediate and local. Alvince Osura, a counter-terrorism officer from Kenya, sees direct parallels between the history of the Holocaust and the threats he faces today. "I work very closely with the Jewish community in Kenya," he explained during a pre-trip session. "I chose this course to help me understand the needs of my clients... and to see the resilience in the people.”
Global political polarization weighs heavily on Alejandro Ríos, joining from the Yucatan State Police in Mexico. He expressed deep concern over the rhetoric of division he sees globally, noting that class divides are often weaponized by leaders to consolidate power. "I see a lot of similarities in what is happening in the world right now,” he said. When a leader "starts to talk about [a group] as 'wrong'... the rest of the people start to believe it," Ríos warned, emphasizing how quickly such narratives can take hold.
Returning to the delegation for a second time, former Police Lieutenant Scott Schmoeller reflected on the insidious nature of complicity, observing that, “The brainwashing that was going on... these ordinary public safety law enforcement officers start taking orders, and as a collective, all just start committing complete atrocities," he observed. For Schmoeller, the lesson is clear: "If you’re not continuing to learn and educate yourself, it will just fall to the side."
The terrifying legality of the Holocaust is the focal point for S.M. Kernodle-Hodges, a former law enforcement officer turned legal reform advocate. "You don't really hear about law enforcement the way that we're going to be learning about it," she said, noting that understanding how the law itself was weaponized is crucial for modern leaders.
Expanding the Curriculum: A Joint International Delegation to Berlin and Krakow
While the core mission remains unchanged, the 2026 delegation is set to be the largest to date. Partnering with the Rutgers University Miller Center on Policing and Community Resilience, the Center will be bringing together over 120 students and leaders. This expansion includes a partnership with the German Police Union (GdP), which is sending 30 senior-ranking officers to march alongside their American counterparts: a powerful symbol of reconciliation and shared responsibility.
For the first time, the program includes an extension to Berlin, where students will visit the House of the Wannsee Conference, the very villa where the "Final Solution" was bureaucratically formalized. This addition provides a chilling "bookend" to the experience; students will see not only the industrial operationalization of genocide in Krakow but also the administrative conference rooms in Berlin where it was signed into existence.
Expert Instruction: Analyzing Radicalization and Obedience with Global Leaders
The 2026 delegation is further distinguished by the presence of world-renowned experts who will be teaching on the ground. Joining the students are Jochen Kopelke, Federal Chairman of the German Police Union (GdP), and Christophe Busch, Director of the Hannah Arendt Institute.
Kopelke, views this trip as mandatory for the soul of the profession. "We cannot afford to have a police force that functions only on obedience," Kopelke stated ahead of the trip. "For German officers, wearing our uniforms at Auschwitz is a heavy burden, but it is a necessary one. We are there to show that the police must be the first line of defense for democracy, not a tool for its destruction. When we march with our global colleagues, we are saying that victim protection and human rights are not just policies: they are the only way we earn our legitimacy."
Joining the discussions on how ordinary people become perpetrators is Christophe Busch, whose work focuses on the mechanisms of radicalization. "We often look at the Holocaust and see monsters, but the terrifying truth is that we are looking at people who believed they were doing their duty," Busch explained. "My goal with this delegation is to peel back the layers of polarization to understand how those involved rationalized their actions. We must understand the 'process of perpetration' so we can spot the early warning signs of democratic decay in our own societies today."
The April departure is fast approaching, and the students of PSPS 5500 are preparing not just for a trip, but for a transformation. As they pack their dress uniforms and finish their readings, they carry with them the weight of the past and the responsibility of the future.