(JNS) Adelphi University in Long Island, N.Y., inaugurated its first two-day trip to two museums in Washington, D.C. in early March to promote empathy and understanding between black and Jewish students.

On the first day, the 18 students visited the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. The following day, they explored the newest Smithsonian fixture on the National Mall, the National Museum of African American History and Culture.

David Machlis, associate professor of finance and economics at Adelphi, organized the trip in response to rising antisemitism and racism in America—what he called an “epidemic of hatred.”

“This is the most important program I’ve ever developed,” he told Inside Higher Ed. “These are our future leaders.”

He added that “antisemitism is not just a Jewish issue, nor should combating racism be just a black issue.”

Roodginia Guerrier, a senior at Adelphi, told the online publication that she and her peers must “make sure history does not repeat itself.”

“It’s not that far in the past,” she said. “That’s what I really got from it. I’ve seen some trends going the wrong way, and I’m at the age where I’m not too young to forget. I can use my power in order to do something about it.”