YESHIVA UNIVERSITY • FALL 2008 • VOLUME 13 NO. 1

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YUTodayIN

SID

E INDIANSUMMERStudents LearnAbout GlobalHealth inIndian Context

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SCIENCESURGEYUHS GirlsGet AdvancedScienceCurriculum

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RINGMOST RAREMuseum DisplaysBuried MedievalJewels

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GROWTHPOTENTIALStern AlumnaeEstablishLong-Term Fund

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Rabbi Yona Reiss Begins Tenure at RIETSNew Dean Envisions Broader Community Role for Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary

Alawyer and rabbi whopracticed at a topNew York City lawfirm before directing

the Beth Din of America,Rabbi Yona Reiss is clearly aman who understands TorahUmadda—Yeshiva University’sguiding mission of Torah schol-arship combined with worldly

knowledge. But as the new Maxand Marion Grill Dean of RabbiIsaac Elchanan TheologicalSeminary (RIETS), Rabbi Reiss’focus lies squarely on safe-guarding the spiritual edificeof the institution.

“We are, at our core, ayeshiva,” he said. “Regardless ofwhat program any student is

in, he is a ben hayeshiva, a mem-ber of the yeshiva community.”

Several months into hisnew role as dean, Rabbi Reissis charting a course for theyeshiva that builds on its illus-trious position as the leadingcenter for the education andordination of Orthodox rabbisin North America.

He is taking steps to makethe yeshiva cohesive in its inter-nal organization, broad in itsoutreach to communities acrossNorth America, and more prac-tical in its training of profes-sional rabbis. The initiativeswill further enhance theschool’s high standards ofexcellence and will be groundedin a rabbinic curriculum thattreasures Torah Lishmah [Torahstudy for its own sake].

“We employ the best andthe brightest roshei yeshiva[professors of Talmud],” saidRabbi Reiss, himself a RIETSmusmakh [graduate].

Rabbi Reiss will apply his Jewish legal expertise to RIETS curriculum.

A Record-Setting Year, But FundraisingSuccess Is Only Part of the Story

Withincreasing sup-port for scholar-ships and aca-demic excellence

at the heart of its planning,Yeshiva University closed thebooks on one of the most suc-cessful philanthropic years inits history. The funds come ata time of significant need as theUniversity retools and buildsat record levels.

Supporters gave the largest-ever amount of cash gifts to theUniversity in a single year,totaling $104 million. Poweredin part by the previous year’s$100 million pledge fromYU Board chairman emeritus

Ronald P. Stanton, YU received30 new gifts of $1 million andabove, the largest such numberin its history. Overall, morethan 10,700 supporters gaveor pledged to the University,their gifts adding up to $146.8million in total philanthropicfunds.

“The generosity of our phil-anthropic partners, especiallyin a difficult economic climate,is a great story,” said PresidentRichard M. Joel, “but it is onlya part of the story.” Because tui-tion alone does not cover thefull cost of educating an under-graduate student, he noted, theUniversity needs to raise a sig-

nificant amount of unrestrictedfunds to make up the differ-ence every year.

Scholarships are particularlycritical: approximately two-thirds of YU undergraduatesreceive gift aid from the Univer-sity. “The University’s needs—and the cost to fulfill them—are high,” President Joel said.“It is only with increased par-ticipation that our progress cancontinue.”

The final 2007–08 fundrais-ing figures compound the suc-cess of the previous year, andbode well for continued growth:over two years, YU has raised

YU Appoints 30 Faculty

Yeshiva University con-tinues the steadyexpansion of its fac-ulty this academic

year with the appointment of30 new faculty members. Ofthese, 10 are newly created posi-tions or replacements of for-mer adjunct positions.

“We’re continuing the mo-mentum forward to make surewe have a first-class faculty andto keep the student-to-facultyratio at 10 to 1,” said MortonLowengrub, PhD, provost andsenior vice president for aca-demic affairs, who overseesfaculty appointments at allschools, except Albert Einstein College of Medicine.

New faculty were added across the entire University, with a

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Peter Achinstein will teach thehistory and philosophy ofscience at Yeshiva College.

YU Goes GlobalOver the Summer

This camper from the Israeli development town of Yeruchamwas among a group of teens at a summer camp run by YUstudents in Israel. It was just one of many programs thatbrought wisdom to life in Israel, China, Jordan, France,Italy, and India over the summer.

> READ MORE ON PAGES 4–5.

2 YUToday Fall 2008

YESHIVA UNIVERSITY

Morry J. WeissChairman, YU Board of Trustees

Richard M. JoelPresident

Dr. Norman LammChancellor

Georgia B. PollakVice President for Communications and Public Affairs

Stanley I. Raskas, Chairman, Board of Directors, Yeshiva College; Marjorie Diener Blenden,Chairman, Board of Directors, Stern College for Women; Bernard L. Madoff, Chairman, Board ofDirectors, Sy Syms School of Business; Ruth L. Gottesman, Chairperson, Board of Overseers,Albert Einstein College of Medicine; Kathryn O. Greenberg, Chair, Board of Directors, BenjaminN. Cardozo School of Law; Robert Schwalbe, Chair, Board of Governors, Wurzweiler School ofSocial Work; Mordecai D. Katz, Chairman, Board of Directors, Bernard Revel Graduate Schoolof Jewish Studies; Beth B. Myers, Chair, Board of Governors, Ferkauf Graduate School ofPsychology; Moshael J. Straus, Chairman, Board of Directors, Azrieli Graduate School of JewishEducation and Administration; Julius Berman, Chairman, Board of Trustees, (affiliate) RabbiIsaac Elchanan Theological Seminary; Miriam Goldberg, Chairman, Board of Trustees, YU HighSchoolsTheodore N. Mirvis and Michael Jesselson, Vice Chairs, Board of Directors, (affiliate)Yeshiva University Museum. Board listing as of September 1, 2008.

YU TODAY

Valerie PetersEditor-in-Chief

Kelly BermanEditor

Boris VolunuevDesigner

Jared Bernstein, Enrique Cubillo, Karen Gardner, Norman Goldberg,Elizabeth Kratz, Helen Kuttner, Chana Mayefsky, Celia Regan,

Peter Robertson, Raphael Rosenzweig, Arlene Schulman,Hedy Shulman, V. Jane Windsor, Matthew Yaniv, John Zawacki

Contributors

yutoday@yu.eduwww.yu.edu/yutoday

YUToday is published quarterly during the academic year by the Yeshiva University Department of Communicationsand Public Affairs, 401 Furst Hall, 500 West 185th St., New York, NY 10033-3201 (212-960-5285). It is distributedfree to faculty, staff, students, alumni, donors, and friends. © Yeshiva University 2008

YUTodayV O L U M E 1 3 • N U M B E R 1

Lea Ferreira dos Santos,assistant professor ofphysics at Stern Col-lege for Women, was

selected from over 70 appli-cants to join the US delega-tion to the 3rd InternationalUnion of Pure and AppliedPhysics (IUPAP) InternationalConference on Women inPhysics in Seoul, South Korea,in October. The conference willbring participants together to share common problems andfind ways to improve women’s underrepresentation in physics.

Growing up in Brazil, where she attended the Universityof São Paulo and earned her PhD, Santos remembers feelingsomewhat isolated as a woman in her science classes. “Itwasn’t until I came to the US and was exposed to discus-sions about women in science that I realized the depth ofthe social problem behind the small numbers,” she said.

Santos will help prepare the US delegation’s paper onthe situation of women in physics in the US and will pre-sent a poster on her research.

Since joining Stern College last fall, Santos has worked toincrease the number of physics students. “In seven years, ourdepartment has evolved from offering just two classes forfreshmen to being one of the most vibrant in the college,”said Santos, who will share this success with conference par-ticipants. “This year, for the first time in our history, one of ourstudents is going to a graduate school in physics.” [See “Forg-ing a Career Path in Physics” in YUToday, Summer 2008.] �

Yeshiva College andStern College forWomen professorswill tackle male

infertility, breast cancer, andsupercritical fluids as recipi-ents of three substantial sci-ence grants totaling close tohalf a million dollars.

Dr. Margarita Vigodner,assistant professor of biologyat Stern College, was awardeda $300,000 Young Clinical Sci-entist Award by the FlightAttendant Medical ResearchInstitute to research the effectsof secondhand smoke on maleinfertility. Stern students GabiGoodfriend, Eliana Grosser, andMarina Pekar will assist her.

Vigodner’s long-term goal isto identify the roots of maleinfertility and believes that“the problem will be over-come in the foreseen future,”she said. Her current researchis based on 10 years of investi-gation in the fields of sper-matogenesis (the developmentof sperm), male fertility, andreproductive health.

Dr. Marina Holz, assistantprofessor of biology at Stern,will study the role of the S6Kinase 1 (S6K1) gene in breastcancer through a three-year,$75,000 grant from the EliasGenevieve and GeorgiannaAtol Charitable Trust.

After spending several yearsresearching the molecular mech-anisms of S6K1, Holz observedthat the gene was overex-

pressed in cancers, especiallybreast cancer.

“I would like to identifyspecific targets of S6K1 inbreast cancer that control cellproliferation and contributeto the cancerous phenotype,”said Holz, who will be work-ing with Stern graduates RachelYamnik ’08S and Nilly Brodt’08S, and current students AllaDigilova and Daphne Davis.

The American ChemicalSociety Petroleum ResearchFund awarded Dr. BruceHrnjez, associate professor ofchemistry at Yeshiva College,$65,000 for his research onsolvent effects in supercriticalfluids. Yeshiva College willmatch $55,000 of that fund-ing, for a total of $120,000 overthree years.

Hrnjez’s work focuses on a

molecule’s surroundings; themedium in which a moleculeis dissolved can have an effecton the way the moleculevibrates, rotates, and interactswith light, and the way itschemical bonds break or formin a chemical reaction.

Hrnjez, who created anexperimental research labora-tory in Belfer Hall on the WilfCampus, coauthored his first

paper to come out of thisresearch in 2005 in the Journalof Physical Chemistry, with stu-dent coauthors Samuel Sultan’05Y, Georgiy Natanov ’07Y,David Kastner ’05Y, andMichael Rosman ’05Y.

“The grant shows externalrecognition from my peersthat I have created a viableresearch program at YeshivaCollege,” said Hrnjez. �

Stern Prof Blazes Trailfor Women in Physics

INDIA’S MINISTEROF HEALTH VISITSEINSTEINDr. Allen M. Spiegel (left), TheMarilyn and Stanley M. KatzDean of Einstein, showed Dr.Anbumani Ramadoss (right),India’s Minister of Health andFamily Welfare, around themedical college during hisvisit in June. Dr. Ramadoss wasimpressed with the breadthof programs and research col-laborations established byEinstein faculty membersthroughout his homeland.Overall, 11 faculty members,14 students, and four post-doctoral fellows were involved

with 10 institutions in Mumbai, Bangalore, and rural India. The special meeting was organizedby Dr. Sanjeev Gupta, professor of medicine and of pathology at Einstein. �

Bruce Hrnjez (above) received a grant from the AmericanChemical Society Petroleum Research Fund.

Lea Ferreira dos Santos

CORRECTIONIn the last issue of YUToday (Summer 2008, Vol. 12, No. 4), the headline for our faculty profileof Dr. Rona Novick on page 2 incorrectly stated “Ferkauf Professor Tackles Bullying.” Dr. Novick is, infact, an associate professor at Azrieli Graduate School of Jewish Education and Administration. �

Grants Boost Research by Undergrad FacultyScientific Studies Include Inquiry into Effects of Secondhand Smoke on Male Infertility

Fall 2008 YUToday 3

Path to Common FutureBegins at ChampionsGateLeaders Discuss Future Goals of Orthodox Community

“Agreat shared jour-ney” is how Pres-ident Richard M.Joel described the

ChampionsGate III NationalLeadership Conference inOrlando, FL, July 20–22.

The ChampionsGate con-ference, convened by the Cen-ter for the Jewish Future (CJF)and sponsored by Ira and MindyMitzner and the Legacy Her-itage Fund Rabbinic Enrich-ment Initiative, was a vehicleto build consensus among theleadership of Orthodoxy—rab-bis, lay leaders, and Jewish com-munity professionals.

“We have a wonderfulopportunity to bring our peo-ple together,” said PresidentJoel. “We have to strive as indi-viduals to think about who wewant to be in order to have acommon sense of identity.”

The excitement and senseof shared purpose was palpa-ble among the 17 rabbis, 110lay leaders from 35 communi-ties around the country, 18heads of school, and the YUdeans, faculty, and administra-tors who participated.

Ira Mitzner ’81Y, presidentof Rida Development Corpo-ration, which owns Champi-onsGate, and a YU Trustee,hosted the conference.

“Our objective was tostrengthen an emerging net-work of passionate and com-mitted leaders who understandhow to leverage the efforts ofone another and partner effec-tively to realize communalgoals,” said Rabbi KennethBrander, dean of CJF.

The topics covered duringthe course of the conferencetouched on issues of primary

concern to the Jewish world,such as core values in a TorahUmadda community, futureleadership, andmodelinghealthyleadership collaboration.

The final plenary on thecrisis of tuition in Jewish edu-cation drew the most atten-tion and intense discussion.Rabbi Josh Elkin, executivedirector of the Partnership forExcellence in Jewish Educa-tion (PEJE), and Yossi Prager’86Y, North American directorof the AVI CHAI Foundation,which supports Jewish pro-grams in the US and Israel,offered honest and practicalalternative sources of revenueto defray soaring tuition fees.

The closing session, enti-tled “Machar” [tomorrow],charged participants to setgoals and action items forthemselves, and their families,

institutions, and communities.“This conference is extremely

important to perpetuate ourcore values and ideas for thefuture of Orthodox Jewry,”said Barry Shrage, president ofthe Combined Jewish Philan-thropies of Boston.

“The leadership and collab-orative spirit that PresidentJoel has engendered, and thatRabbi Brander has helped shape,provides an opportunity for layleaders to share ideas andexperiences that will helpsecure the future of ModernOrthodoxy,” Shrage said.

Rabbi Efrem Goldberg ’97Y,R,spiritual leader of Boca Raton

Synagogue, called Champions-Gate III “a remarkable oppor-tunity to connect with Jewishleaders from across the UnitedStates.”

“Although I graduated fromYU many years ago, it contin-ues to inspire me and my com-munity through the incredi-ble resources it provides,” RabbiGoldberg said. “Together wecan create an energy and spiritto propel the Jewish commu-nity forward.”

To listen to some of theproceedings of this confer-ence, go to www.yu.edu/CJF/championsgate �

Harry Ballan (left), of Riverdale, NY, and Lance L. Hirt (right), YU Trusteeof Lawrence, NY, were two of the many lay leaders at the conference.

Stern College Alumnae Look to theFuture With Long-Term Fund

The alumnae of SternCollege for Women(SCW) and Sy SymsSchool of Business

(SSSB) are carefully planting aseed that they will nurture overthe next 10–25 years.

A group of alumnae—Eve-lyn Havasi-Stavsky ’82S, CaliOrenbuch ’85S, Shira Yoshor’89S, and Aviva Weilgus ’01SB—and Stern board memberDoris Travis have spearheadedthe creation of a long-terminvestment fund, the SCWFuture Fund, that will bear fruitover the next two decades.

“With this fund, alumnae

have the opportunity to inspirefirst-class women’s leadershipand to perpetuate an endur-ing commitment to excellencein women’s education,” saidHavasi-Stavsky, global head ofthe asset finance group at Citi-group Global Markets.

The fund has an initial tar-get of $180,000 in seed moneythat the founders hope toreach with contributions fromalumnae and friends, whichwill then will be invested andmanaged by the InvestmentCommittee of YU’s Board ofTrustees.

“We want Stern alumnae toshare in this unique opportu-nity to secure their alma materfor the future,” said Travis, aformer banker herself for 25years. “We hope to show thenext generation what we haveaccomplished.”

Initially, 1,000 shares areavailable at different levels, fromhalf shares starting at $90 to120 shares (at over $21,600),which entitles the shareholder

to sit on the executive boardand participate in decisions onhow the money is spent.

“We want alumnae to thinkof giving these shares as giftsto celebrate the birth of grand-children, anniversaries, bat mitz-vahs, and weddings,” said Travis.

The SCW Future Fund is aunique way to give to theschool as it presents the oppor-tunity for alumnae to drive itsfuture growth, said Havasi-Stavsky, who recently joinedStern’s board.

With a daughter enteringStern in the fall and anotherplanning to follow in a fewyears, she said it was time forher to begin giving back to heralma mater.

“If any Stern graduate thinksabout her college years, she’llsee the value of a commit-ment to philanthropy, whichincludes making Stern’s futureeducation even better,” saidHavasi-Stavsky.

For more information, visitwww.yu.edu/scwfuture �

Evelyn Havasi-Stavsky is one offour alumnae setting up the fund.

YU Appoints 30 Facultycontinued from page 1

particular focus on undergraduate philosophy, mathematics,English, biology, and Jewish studies. Three full professors werehired in the philosophy, English, and math departments.

Peter Achinstein, a distinguished professor of history andphilosophy of science from Johns Hopkins University, wasappointed the Jay and Jeanie Schottenstein Professor of Philos-ophy at Yeshiva College. Achinstein, who begins in January 2009and will play a major role in the college’s Jay and Jeanie Schot-tenstein Honors Program, won numerous awards, including aGuggenheim Fellowship, the Lakatos Award from the LondonSchool of Economics and Political Science, and numerous researchgrants from the National Science Foundation and the NationalEndowment for the Humanities. He has written five books, editedseven others, and published widely in scholarly journals.

Linda Shires, PhD, a widely published scholar of Victorian lit-erature, was appointed professor of English at Stern College forWomen. Previously at Syracuse University for the past 12 years,Shires also taught at New York University and Princeton, fromwhich she received her PhD in 1981. The recipient of a Guggen-heim Fellowship, she will take over the chair of the Englishdepartment at Stern in fall 2009.

Yisong Yang, PhD, joins Yeshiva College as a professor ofmathematics from Polytechnic University in Brooklyn. His areasof research are nonlinear partial differential equations, mathe-matical physics, and applied mathematics. Yang was an OthmerSenior Faculty Fellow at Polytechnic in 2006 and 2009 andreceived the Institut Henri Poincare/Gauthier-Villars Prize inParis in 1996. He has organized a number of national confer-ences and has received numerous research grants from theNational Science Foundation.

At Einstein, Jan Vijg, PhD, was named professor and chair ofgenetics. He comes from the Buck Institute for Age Research inNovato, CA, where his studies focused on genome instabilityand the mechanisms through which it may cause human dis-ease and aging. Vijg’s investigations of DNA damage and itsimpact on longevity will augment the work for which investi-gators in Einstein’s Institute for Aging Research are renowned. Anative of the Netherlands, he holds eight patents in researchprocesses and methodologies and has authored more than 200scientific publications.

For a complete list of new faculty hires across the University,go to www.yu.edu/news/newfaculty2008 �

THURSDAY, MAY 14 • 11AMTHE WAMU THEATER

MADISON SQUARE GARDEN

www.yu.edu/commencement

COMMENCEMENT2009

SAVETHE DATE

Summer ExpandsHorizons of Learning

4 YUToday Fall 2008

Camps Make Positive Impact on Israeli Youth

This summer, 26 stu-dents from YeshivaUniversity and othercolleges across the

US and Israel made a lastingimpact on the next genera-tion of Israeli youth fromdevelopment communities.The Counterpoint Israel Pro-gram, a project of the Centerfor the Jewish Future (CJF), ranthree-week summer camps for110 secular teens from diversebackgrounds in the southernIsraeli towns of Yerucham andDimona.

The Zusman Family Coun-terpoint Israel Program inYerucham and the ServiceCorps Counterpoint Israel Pro-gram in Dimona—held for thefirst time this year with sup-port from the Charles andLynn Schusterman Family Foun-dation—provided the youthwith important life skills.

The college students cre-ated programs to promote theteens’ self-esteem and teachthem Jewish values. At the localmunicipalities’ request, the

teens also took English-lan-guage classes to improve theirchances of college acceptance.

The college students, manyof whom have worked beforeas Hebrew school teachers andcounselors, were trained fortheir roles as camp counselorsat Yeshiva University beforethey left. This year, the CJF wasable to create a “dream team”of counselors, chosen from apool of close to 100 applicants,said Aliza Abrams ’05S, Coun-terpoint Israel’s coordinator.

“Our counselors are full ofenergy, creativity, and passion,”said Abrams. “We have teenswho have returned to camp athird time—not simply for theamazing art classes and thefun trips, but for our great coun-selors as well.”

The program was a learningopportunity for the counselorswho processed the experienceof making a difference in theteens’ lives through workshopsand seminars. They exploredissues of tikkun olam [repairing

the world], social action, humanresponsibility, commitmentto the Jewish community, andtheir relationship with Israel.

“Counterpoint Israel is notjust about service work—it isalso about learning the processof what it means to be a Jew-ish leader,” said Shuki Taylor,Counterpoint’s director. “Ourgoal was for the counselors toleave with an understandingthat it is not enough to justpartake in chesed [charity]work—they need to internal-ize the experience. We wantedthem to realize that they mat-ter to the world, and that theworld should matter to them.”

Every day, professionalinstructors ran workshops tocultivate the teens’ individualtalents in art, fashion, dance,song, and sports. The activi-ties were designed to produceimmediate results so that theteens felt a sense of self-grati-fication and artistic expres-sion—an undiscovered area intheir lives.

The workshops culminated

in a moving closing ceremonyattended by family membersand local officials, where theteens performed, exhibited proj-ects, and received prizes fortheir progress.

Taylor described the breath-taking sight of the teens’ joyand their parents’ amazementupon discovering their chil-dren’s talents. “When our stu-dents work with teenagersfrom different socio-economicbackgrounds, they appreciatehow effective they can be intransforming lives. It is throughthis process of giving that wediscover so much more aboutourselves,” said Rabbi KennethBrander, dean of CJF. “Ourstudents realize that they canserve as agents of change,both within the Jewish com-munity and the world aroundthem. It is my hope that theyleave this experience with arenewed commitment to serveas klei kodesh [Jewish commu-nity professionals] or as laykodesh [lay leaders] as part oftheir future aspirations.”�

Counselor Ayelet Kahane helps Dimona campers with an art project.

India Offers a Different View on Health

Agroup of undergrad-uate and graduatestudents got a globalperspective on health

psychology this summer witha course in New York City fol-lowed by a trip to India toconduct research with stu-dents at St. Xavier’s College inMumbai. The six-week sum-mer course was a unique oppor-tunity to pilot a multidiscipli-nary program in global healthresearch, said Dr. Sonia Such-day, co-director of YU’s Insti-

tute of Public Health Sciencesand head of the clinical healthpsychology program at FerkaufGraduate School of Psychology.

“The goal was to get thestudents to think globally abouthealth and the challenges ofresearch in a different culturethan one’s own,” said Such-day. “The course encouragedstudents to explore the ideathat health is a function ofsocial and behavioral func-tioning and influenced by cul-tural beliefs and practices.”

Six students—includingthree from Ferkauf, two fromAlbert Einstein College of Med-icine, and one from Stern Col-lege for Women—traveled toIndia with Suchday.

The course used India as aunique example of a publichealth challenge: as a develop-ing country and an emergenteconomic and political power,it has a heterogeneous popu-lation and a democratic phi-losophy that emphasizes indi-vidual freedom of choice.

“The challenge is salient

when it comes to health,”noted Suchday. “India has along history of a mind-bodyperspective on health throughits traditional system of medi-cine, Ayurveda. Hence, culturaland spiritual values are intri-cately entwined with healthand well-being.”

The YU students interactedwith students from St. Xavier’sin a one-week workshop, afterwhich they presented postersaddressing the cultural andbehavioral influences on health.They also participated in a day-long workshop on Eastern per-spectives on health and healingand visited the Tata Instituteof Social Sciences, a premiergraduate research institute.

“The trip to India taughtme the importance of lookingto other cultures for insightinto human behavior becausewhile we are all made of thesame material, the way a coun-try and culture nurture a peo-ple is quite surprising,” saidFerkauf graduate student HillaryLewin ’06S. �

Ferkauf student Hillary Lewin(right) with a student atSt. Xavier’s College.

CARDOZO STUDENT INTERNS IN JORDANBenjamin N. Cardozo School of Law student Sarah Gregory (above)got an insider’s view on media law reform and free speech issues inAmman, Jordan, during a summer internship with AmmanNet radiostation, Center for Defending the Freedom of Journalists, and Al IsraUniversity Law School. Gregory was one of 154 law students whochose to spend the summer working in the public sector with thesupport of stipends from Cardozo. The school awarded a total of$556,000 to students working in government agencies, interna-tional organizations, and judicial chambers. They work to make adifference in fields as diverse as prisoners’ legal services, family vio-lence, Medicare rights, and the environment, and in places as far asKenya, Rwanda, Budapest, and Hong Kong. �

After three intensive weeks of conju-gating French verbs and learningbasic conversational skills in NewYork, 14 students in the Summer

French Language Institute, sponsored by thehonors programs atYeshiva College (YC) andStern College for Women(SCW), set out to test theirknowledge in France thissummer.

“A new language ishard to learn,” saidMichelle Grundman, ajunior at Stern College,“but being in the coun-try makes you want tolearn it and use it daily.”

In Paris, they partici-pated in guided toursgiven in French, attendeda French play, and prac-ticed their new languageskills, under the guidanceof Dr. Rachel Mesch,assistant professor ofFrench and chair ofmodern languages atYC, and Dr. Holly HaahrPouquet, former YC assis-tant professor of French who lives in Paris.

The course was the beginning of whatMesch hoped would be “a lifelong relationship

with France and the French language for stu-dents. That’s what learning a language does—it creates a foundation upon which you canbuild a relationship with another culture,” theprofessor said.

The group visited theEiffel Tower, the Lou-vre, and Versailles. Theytoured the Jewish MaraisDistrict, prayed in Ash-kenazi and Sephardicsynagogues, and engagedJewish French studentsin conversation overShabbat meals. In allthese activities, they hadthe guidance of NachumRybak, a rabbinical stu-dent at Rabbi IsaacElchanan TheologicalSeminary, who accom-panied the group.

The class also madeits way to Troyes, birth-place of the legendaryJewish biblical exegeteRashi, and met RabbiGilles Bernheim, thenewly elected GrandRabbi of France.

Said YC student Michael Goon: “The tripwas an opportunity to connect with French cul-ture and way of life, in the native tongue.” �

Fall 2008 YUToday 5

Honors Trip Immerses Students in Italian Art

Nothing could haveprepared Tzvi Feifelfor the impact ofseeing Michelan-

gelo’s David up close at theGallerie dell’Accademia in Flo-rence. The Yeshiva College (YC)junior was “awestruck” by thesculpture during the YC Sum-mer Honors Travel Course toItaly, sponsored by the Jay andJeanie Schottenstein HonorsProgram, in June.

Feifel was one of a group of12 men who took courses in“Western Art in Italy,” taughtby Dr. John Hogan, assistantprofessor of art history at YC,and “Crisis and Authority inEuropean Literature and Artin the 17th Century,” taughtby Dr. Elizabeth Stewart, pro-fessor of English at YC.

The two professors accom-

panied the students to Italy,and were joined by Dr. GabrielCwilich, professor of physics—who organized much of thetrip and served as translator—and Rabbi David Horwitz, roshyeshiva [professor of Talmud]at Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theo-logical Seminary, who super-vised the students’ daily reli-gious learning.

Before their departure, thestudents spent almost threeweeks poring over the Metro-politan Museum of Art’s ancientart collection and immersingthemselves in literature fromthe Baroque period.

In Rome and Florence, thestudents saw some of Westernhistory’s most significant art,architecture, and material cul-ture from the ancient Romanperiod to the Renaissance and

Baroque eras. They investigatedthe Roman Forum and Capi-toline Hill and studied the artin the Galleria Borghese in

Rome. In Florence, they vis-ited the Uffizi Gallery and theDuomo, climbing all 464 stepsof Brunelleschi’s Dome.

“Walking around, touching,seeing, tasting, and hearing ourobjects of study in their imme-diacy—there’s no substitutefor that,” said Stewart.

The group visited the Jew-ish Museum of the Synagoguein Florence, the Roman Jew-ish Community Museum, theJewish catacombs on Via Appia,and toured the ghetto in Rome.

Senior Noam Srolovitzfound the synagogue in Flor-ence most inspiring. “Its mas-sive size and beautifully classi-cal design blew me away andmade me proud to be Jewish,”he said.

“For me as a teacher, themost inspiring moments inthis course were witnessing thestudents’ sense of wonder atthe magnificent, historic workswe visited,” Hogan said. �

John Hogan (center) led students on a tour of the Vatican Museum.

Students Learn to ‘Parler’ in Paris

Eleven Yeshiva University undergraduate science stu-dents worked alongside top scientific scholars at AlbertEinstein College of Medicine over the summer. Theywere: (front L–R) David Pinn; Wendy Hosinking;

Chanie Dinerman (in striped shirt); Tehilla Raviv; and AriGreenbaum; and (back L–R) David Gottlieb; Yehudit Fis-cher; Reena Gottesman; Ariella Hollander; Batya MatlaHerzberg; and Yossi Steinberger. Although all 11 studentsparticipated in the same program, nine were designatedRoth Scholars and two were University Summer ResearchScholars, reflecting different sources of funding. Althoughmost of the students are considering medical careers, thisexperience often piques their interest in research and spursthem to apply to combined MD/PhD programs. �

For Select Few, Lab WasCoolest Place To Be

FIRST YU CRUISE TAKES ALUMNI AND FRIENDS TO MEDITERRANEANIn June and July, 82 alumni and friends of Yeshiva University explored the Jewish roots of Spainand Italy aboard a cruise ship on YU’s first travel and study program. Joined by PresidentRichard M. Joel and his wife, Esther, they learned about the Jewish history of the region in lec-tures by Rabbi Jacob J. Schacter (far left), senior scholar at the Center for the Jewish Futureand the cruise’s scholar-in-residence, on their stops at Savona, Italy; Barcelona and Palma deMallorca, Spain; Tunis, Tunisia; La Valetta, Malta; and Palermo, Sicily. The cruise departedfrom Rome, where the group, including (third photo from the left) Dr. William Schwartz,RIETS Trustee, and wife Debbie, toured the Colosseum. For information on next year’s trip tothe Baltics and Russia, departing August 9, contact Heidi Kuperman at kuperman@yu.edu �

Students Tali Trachtman and ElishevaEisenberg tour the Eiffel Tower.

This fall, the brightestsophomores at SamuelH. Wang Yeshiva Uni-versity High School

for Girls (YUHSG) will partici-pate in a new Science Institute,an in-house curriculum thatwill advance their scientificknowledge, science literacy, andresearch methodology skills. Itis the first program of its kindamong Jewish high schools inthe metropolitan area.

The 10 young women in-vited to join the Science Insti-tute participated in a weeklongsummer seminar at the DolanDNA Learning Center, the

world’s first science centerdevoted entirely to educationin the field of genetics.

The advanced curriculumwill be in addition to the stu-dents’ regular course load ofJewish and general studies dur-ing the school year.

“We wanted to accommo-date these students’ academicneeds,” said teacher Ruth Fried,science department chairper-son at YUHSG and creator ofthe Science Institute. “But wealso wanted to keep them inte-grated within the broader class.”

For this reason, students inthe institute will have self-

contained lessons in the sci-ences, but will be fully inte-grated with their classmates forthe remainder of the day.

YUHSG’s new $1 million,state-of-the-art science labora-tory prompted considerationfor the formation of the Sci-ence Institute.

The lab will house experi-ments for Regents, SAT II, andAdvanced Placement coursesin biology, chemistry, andphysics, as well as forensic sci-ence, human physiology, andresearch methodology.

Twice a week, the youngwomen will join Jason J.Williams of Stony Brook Uni-versity and the Dolan DNALearning Center’s Cold SpringsHarbor Laboratory for after-school classes in research meth-odology. Williams will help thestudents cultivate a sophisti-cated approach to scientificinquiry and prepare them forthe prestigious Siemens West-inghouse Science and Tech-nology Competition and theIntel Science Talent Search.

In addition, before their ju-nioryear, students will be placedin the Albert Einstein Collegeof Medicine-YUHSG SummerResearch Program, where theywill work with world-renownedscientists including Dr. Nir

Barzilai, director of the Insti-tute for Aging Research at Ein-stein and originator of the Lon-gevity Genes Project.

Rochelle Brand, head ofschool at YUHSG, sees the newprogram as a good example ofYU’s Torah Umadda mission of

combining secular studies withTorah values.

“I truly believe that as wegain a greater knowledge andappreciation for the wonders ofscience, so too do we gain agreater appreciation for ourcreator,” Brand said. �

6 YUToday Fall 2008

Institute Boosts Sciences at Girls’ High School

The upgraded lab inspired the creation of the Science Institute.

HIGH SCHOOLS HONOR EDWARD BERLINERDr. Edward Berliner (above left)—pictured here being con-gratulated by Dr. Seth Taylor, assistant principal at YeshivaUniversity High School (YUHS) for Boys—was honored asFaculty Member of the Year at the YUHS annual dinner oftribute at the Marriott Marquis in June. Berliner recently over-saw the design and construction of new state-of-the-art sci-ence laboratories at both the boys’ and girls’ schools. Heteaches calculus and AP physics at YUHS-Boys and serves asthe executive director of science management and clinicalprofessor of physics at YU. The gala dinner drew over 400students, alumni, faculty, and staff members from around thetristate area. �

“Our learning tradition is acontinuation of the high levelof learning at the classicalEuropean yeshivot thanks tothe strong foundation laid bymy predecessor, Rabbi Zevu-lun Charlop,” Rabbi Reiss said.

Rabbi Reiss has the benefitof mentorship of Rabbi Char-lop, who presided over aperiod of enormous growth atthe seminary for more than 35years and is now dean emeri-tus of RIETS and special advi-sor to the University presidenton yeshiva affairs.

“I am immensely proud ofwhat has been accomplishedat the yeshiva under RabbiCharlop’s leadership,” said JuliusBerman, chairman of the RIETSboard. “I look forward to part-nering with Rabbi Reiss toensure our yeshiva grows evenstronger in the years ahead.”

A noted Torah scholar withan esteemed academic pedi-gree, Rabbi Reiss is a summacum laude graduate of YeshivaCollege. While at RIETS, heearned the distinction of YadinYadin, an advanced juridicalordination that qualifies out-standing scholars to fill the roleof posekim [decisors of Jewishlaw]. He also earned a law

degree from Yale Law School,where he was senior editor ofthe Law Journal, and workedas an associate at the interna-tional law firm of Cleary Got-tlieb Steen & Hamilton in NewYork City from 1992 to 1998.

“In Rabbi Yona Reiss, wehave a leader who will nurtureYeshiva University’s soul,advance Torah study, and pro-tect Torah values,” said Presi-dent Richard M. Joel, who isalso President of RIETS.

“His integrity, intellect,warmth, and humility informhis work as he partners withan outstanding rabbinic fac-ulty to shape the educationaldirection for the seminary.There are enormous opportu-nities and needs for our com-munity, which our studentsand alumni must be poised tolead,” President Joel said.

Rabbi Reiss brings his con-siderable experience as a juristand expert in Halakhah [Jew-ish law]—particularly as itrelates to divorce—to bear onthe rabbinical curriculum.

“Our rabbinical schoolneeds to be responsive to theneeds of the community andthe needs of our times,” RabbiReiss noted.

“Rabbis now need to be notonly master sermon-givers;they need to be acquainted withcutting-edge medical issues,issues relating to the psycho-logical well-being of families,youth at-risk, tensions of peo-ple who are becoming newlyobservant, and conflicts be-tween Jewish ethical normsand those accepted in the soci-ety around us,” he added.

Under his guidance, theyeshiva will be the center oftraining for rabbis to becomedayonim [judges] who areequipped to deal with prob-lems and disputes within theJewish community. He also seesscope for an even larger roleacross the US and Canadathrough the school’s many kol-lelim [advanced learning insti-tutes].

“The Jewish community isgaining a greater appreciationof the primacy of Torah study,so there has been a greaterdemand for us to branch outto more communities,” saidRabbi Reiss.

He added: “The strength ofour institution is not to with-draw into a cocoon but toenhance society through ourTorah knowledge.” �

Rabbi Yona Reiss Begins RIETS Tenurecontinued from page 1

Banner Fundraising Yearcontinued from page 1

more than $300 million in new pledges and cash. Reflectingtheir increasing support, the percentage of alumni giving in uni-versity-wide cash gifts this year has almost doubled from 2006–07.

“Mr. Stanton’s gift clearly has helped to motivate other sup-porters, with the extraordinary results that you see,” the Presi-dent said. “Every year, more and more YU alumni decide to giveto their alma mater, and we are grateful to all those who supportus. Their gifts—no matter what the size—enable YU to bring onboard the brightest minds and graduate the most committedcommunity members.” �

Eighty-Fourth AnnualHANUKKAH DINNER AND CONVOCATION

KEYNOTE SPEAKER

The Honorable David A. PatersonGovernor, State of New York

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2008THE WALDORF=ASTORIA • NEW YORK CITYCONVOCATION 5:30 PM • DINNER 7:00 PM

For information, please call 212-960-5468 ore-mail hanukkahdinner@yu.edu

www.yu.edu/Hanukkah

SAVE

THEDATE

Fall 2008 YUToday 7

CJF Creates Network for Rabbis’ Wives

Talmud Contest RaisesLevel of Learning

Today’s generation ofrabbis’ wives facesthe unique dilemmaof managing their

private lives and career objec-tives while remaining accessi-ble and responsive to theirhusbands and congregations.

Meira Davis—wife of RabbiEdward Davis, leader of theYoung Israel of Hollywood-Fort Lauderdale since 1981—isa veteran of this juggling act.Davis was recently appointedto coordinate the services thatthe Center for the JewishFuture (CJF) offers these wivesas they pursue concurrent roles

as mothers, communal leaders,and professionals.

Davis’s reputation for “wis-dom, thoughtfulness, andintegrity precedes her,” saidRabbi Jacob J. Schacter, seniorscholar at CJF, who overseesthe rebbetzins’ initiative withDavis. “We are thrilled that sheaccepted our invitation to uti-lize her formidable talents tothe benefit of so many others.”

Davis’s appointment comesas the CJF has expanded its pro-gramming for rebbetzins afterthe huge response it receivedfrom the women attending itsannual Rebbetzins’ Yarchei

Kallah—a two-day conferencewhere the women can networkwith one another, learn Torah,and hear from counseling pro-fessionals in a safe and sup-portive environment. Severalregional mini-conferences coor-dinated by CJF have recentlyspun off from the conference.

Many of the younger womenhave established mentoringrelationships with the veteranrebbetzins they met at the con-ferences.

Davis is also “on call” toshare her expertise with theyounger rebbetzins.

“These events provide reb-

betzins of the YU world with atremendous sense of chizuk[strength],” said TzipporahGelman ’02S, a rebbetzin andteacher in Skokie, IL. “When Ispeak with my mentor, I feelthat I am not alone in thethings I go through on a dailybasis.”

The rebbetzins are alsoturning to some appropriatelymodern tools to stay in touchand deal with their modern-day dilemmas. They share aprivate, online listserv calledthe Rebbetzins’ Café, and enjoya year-round support networkvia e-mail and telephone.

The programs are part ofthe Legacy Heritage Fund Rab-binic Enrichment Initiative,supported by the Legacy Her-itage Fund Limited.

Rebbetzins who would liketo contact Meira Davis cane-mail meira.davis@yu.edu �

Rebbetzin Meira Davis

Y eshiva Universitywrapped up a year-long program ofintense Gemara

study for day-school studentsacross North America when itrecently named the winners ofa series of exams testing thestudents’ knowledge.

Some 250 students fromgrades nine through 12 partic-ipated in the Bronka Wein-traub Bekius Program, held forthe first time last year.

Gabrielle Hiller, a senior atMa’ayanot Yeshiva High Schoolfor Girls in Teaneck, NJ, wasplaced first in the girls’ sectionof the program, while ElieWeintraub, from the Yeshivahof Flatbush, and Yisrael Witty,from Yeshivat Or Chaim, tiedfor first place in the boys’ divi-sion. The winners each receiveda cash prize of $5,000.

Students took exams dur-ing the school year, for whichthey were given cash prizesbased on their performance.

“Participating studentsbroadened their Torah hori-zons and forged a lifelong loveof learning,” said Rabbi EzraSchwartz, who created the pro-gram. Rabbi Schwartz is bochein

[examiner of incoming stu-dents] at Rabbi Isaac ElchananTheological Seminary (RIETS)and a teacher in its Irving I.Stone Beit Midrash Program.

The competition exposedthe participants to a new typeof learning.

“I had never learned a wholemasechta [Talmudic tractate]before,” said Hiller. “That wasthe most exciting part for me.”

Rabbi Schwartz is confi-dent the number of yeshivotparticipating in the program—18 this past year—will at leastdouble in the near future.

Michal Elias Bachrach, fromthe Stern Hebrew High School,won second place in the girls’division, while Ariel Karp, fromthe Yeshivah of Flatbush camein third. Hillel Weintraub wonthird place in the men’s divi-sion (there was no second prizebecause first place was a tie).

The program was namedfor Bronka Weintraub, z”l, whoendowed the Bronka Wein-traub Chair in Talmud atRIETS, occupied by Rabbi Her-shel Reichman. Weintraub wasalso a founder and benefactorof Albert Einstein College ofMedicine. �

Gabrielle Hiller (middle) won the girls’ division. Ariel Karp (left) andMichal Elias Bachrach (right) came in third and second, respectively.

Yeshiva Universityhas appointed J.Michael Gower asvice president for

business affairs and chieffinancial officer.

Gower, who most recentlyserved as vice president forfinance and administrationat the University of Vermont,has extensive experience inuniversity and medical schoolfinancial and business lead-ership, financing, and systemsdevelopment.

“Michael is an experi-enced university professionalwho will guide our financialprogress for the future,” saidPresident Richard M. Joel.“He has served with integrityin financial management posi-tions in university settings fora quarter of a century.”

The greater part of hiscareer was spent at Duke Uni-versity, where he received hisbachelor’s degree as well asan MBA from Duke’s FuquaSchool of Business.

Gower will lead the wayin strengthening YU’s soundfinancial foundation—“thefoundation on which we arecarrying out our mission toennoble and enable our stu-dents to use our sacred val-ues, our knowledge, and ourskills to make a positive dif-ference in the world aroundus,” added President Joel.

The President thankedKarl Kunz for all of his effortsas acting vice president forfinance and chief financialofficer. “We are grateful thatKarl will remain with thefinance office working closely

with Michael,” he said.Gower recently received

the 2008 Professional Devel-opment Award from theNational Association of Col-lege and University BusinessOfficers (NACUBO), whichrecognizes individuals whohave made notable contribu-tions to NACUBO’s profes-sional development activitiesand to the association’s pub-lications program. �

YU Appoints New CFO

J. Michael Gower

H I G H B R I D G E PAR K

L AU R E L H I LL T E R R ACE

A M S T E R DA M AV E N U E

G OT T E SM ANLI B R ARY

Z YSM ANHALL

M O RG E N S T E R NR E SI D E N CE

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NEW WILF CAMPUS HUBA number of offices have opened new spaces on Laurel HillTerrace on the Wilf Campus in Washington Heights.Here’s where you’ll find them:

116 LAUREL HILL TERRACE

• Counseling CenterSuite A646-685-0112www.yu.edu/counseling

• Office of Disability ServicesSuite B646-685-0118

• Student Health CenterSuite C646-685-0391

• Academic Advising CenterSuite D646-685-2836www.yu.edu/advisement

90 LAUREL HILL TERRACE

• Human ResourcesEntrance on corner ofWest 186th Street212-960-5355www.yu.edu/humanresources

90 LAURELHILL TERRACE

• CareerDevelopmentCenterEntrance onWest 186th Street212-960-5400x 5033www.yu.edu/cdc

500 WEST 185TH STREET, NEW YORK, NY 10033 FALL 2008

A PUBLICATION OF YESHIVA UNIVERSITY

The Yeshiva Univer-sity Museum providesthe only North Amer-ican venue for an

unusually significant exhibi-tion of Medieval gold and sil-ver jewelry, tableware, and rarecoins discovered just a decadeago concealed within the foun-dation of a 12th-century housein Erfurt, Germany, a historiccenter of German-speaking Ash-kenazi Jewry.

The treasure, which schol-ars believe was buried by a Jew-ish merchant or moneylenderduring anti-Semitic violence,was discovered by archeologistsduring an excavation in theMedieval Jewish quarter ofthe city.

Carefully hidden under thewall of a private home’s stonecellar were over 3,000 silvercoins, 14 silver ingots, and over600 pieces of jewelry.

“Erfurt: Jewish Treasuresfrom Medieval Ashkenaz,” onview until February 9, features167 objects including a Jewishwedding ring in the shape of atower, unique silver drinkingvessels, coins, elaborate beltbuckles, and a variety of gar-ment accessories, all dating fromthe late 13th and early 14thcenturies.

The exhibition offers aglimpse into Jewish life and cul-ture in Medieval Europe beforethe bubonic plague, or BlackDeath, and anti-Semitic attacksdecimated this small but thriv-

ing population in the mid14th century.

An international tour willfollow with stops at the WallaceCollection (London) and BethHatefutsoth (Tel Aviv), beforethe objects go on permanentdisplay in Erfurt’s 11th-centurysynagogue in the fall of 2009.

Located approximately 70miles southwest of Kassel, Erfurtis the capital city of the centralGerman region of Thuringia.The vast number of coins andingots found among the treas-ure hoard demonstrate Erfurt’sstatus as a center for trade andcommerce in medieval Ger-

many. The Jewishquarter of thecity was located on the banksof the Gera River, crucial toregional trade.

Records show that Jewsprospered in Erfurt as early asthe 9th century, peacefullycoexisting there with othergroups until the 14th century.At this time, burgeoning anti-Semitism erupted into violence,and Jews were targeted asscapegoats for perceived socialand economic ills.

Tragically, the entire Jewishcommunity of Erfurt wasexpelled or murdered at theheight of the bubonic plague

in 1349, when Jews were scape-goated for spreading thedeadly disease.

The exhibition includes athree-dimensional model ofthe city’s synagogue during the12th century, an architecturalmodel of a Medieval synagogue,a 16th-century map of Erfurt,photographs of importantsites, and facsimiles of originalmanuscripts.

Exhibition highlights in-clude a hand-crafted gold Jew-ish wedding ring from the early14th century, one of very fewMedieval Ashkenazi weddingrings in existence. Well-pre-

served artifacts from this periodare rare as jewelry was oftenmelted down when it wasdeemed out of style.

This ring features an ornate,miniature version of a gothictower and six engraved Hebrewletters spelling out mazal tov,meaning “good luck,” writtenon the tower’s roof.

Scholars have interpretedthe tower as symbolizing theTemple of Jerusalem, destroyedby the Romans in 70 C.E. Jew-ish tradition still mandatesthat wedding bands be madeof plain gold without theaddition of stones.

The silver double cupshoused the jewelry found inthe treasure and are notewor-thy for their colorful enameledimages from Aesop’s fables ofThe Fox and the Eagle and TheFox and the Raven. Additionalrarities include a set of eight sil-ver cups designed to fit insideeach other, dozens of belt buck-lesand garment appliqués, a cos-metic set, and seven brooches.

The exhibition is sponsoredby the Leon Levy Foundation,with additional funds from theDavid Berg Foundation andLufthansa.

A symposium, “TreasuredPossessions: Jews and Christiansin a Medieval City,” will be heldat the YU Museum on Novem-ber 5 and at the MetropolitanMuseum of Art on November 6.Formore info, go towww.yu.eduand click on “Events.” �

Buried Jewish Treasure Comes to Light at YUM

The Medieval ornaments and jewelry, found under a cellar, include a rare wedding ring (inset).

VISIT THE

LAMM HERITAGEWEB SITE

The Lamm Heritage celebrates Dr. Norman Lamm’s exceptionalscholarly, spiritual, and leadership contributions to Yeshiva

University and the world Jewish community.

Listen to more than 800 of hissermons, watch videos ofhis lectures, and be inspiredby the wisdom of this giantof Torah atwww.yu.edu/lammheritage