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Dispatches from the network and updates from the Foundation.
Jul 2016
I recently had the privilege of helping lead an Encounter trip to Bethlehem, East Jerusalem and Ramallah. I came away with the strong belief that all communal leaders should participate in one of these trips. Encounter is an organization near and dear to many Wexner alumni and, in fact, many alumni were on my trip. Started 10 years ago by two WGF Alumni, Rabbi Melissa Weintraub (Class 14) and Rabbi
Jul 2016
This is the patrol car of Sgt. Michael Smith who was laid to rest today. He was stationed at the North Central Command Station, which provides service to the vast majority of Jewish institutions in Dallas. Although you can’t see it, there are notes, drawings and messages from many Jewish organizations — day camps, congregations and community members. There is even an Israeli flag with a note attached declaring that
WHP Alumni (Montreal 09) Joel Shalit, Andrea Rosenbloom and Monica Mendel-Bensoussan together with other UTT-Herzliah and YM-YWHA execs at the closing transaction, made complete with champagne and strawberries. For well over a decade, the 106-year-old Montreal YM-YWHA Jewish Community Centers (the “Y”) and United Talmud Torah-Herzliah (“Herzliah”), a mainstream Jewish day school founded over 120 years ago, have considered the possibility of building a new high school immediately adjacent, and
Jul 2016
During his time at Harvard Kennedy School, Gil Avriel, WIF Alum (Class 26) and Legal Adviser to the Israeli National Security Council at the Office of the Prime Minister, published an innovative theory in the Harvard National Security Journal that hopes to change the way we understand ISIS and terrorism. A year after his graduation, Gil’s Civilitary Theory is cited and commended by world experts, discussed at leading national security conferences
Sue Fendrick, WGF Alum (Class 2) — Newton, MA I’ve always found it funny when people have said they no longer see the purpose of mourning on Tisha B’Av, arguing that the Jewish diaspora is now entirely a voluntary one and not the result of tragedy or lack of power; and even that the destruction of the ancient Temple and the end of the sacrificial cult was the best thing
With the passing of Elie Wiesel this week, I lost a dear teacher and mentor of over 30 years. I will always be his student. From the first time I heard him speak when I was a teenager until our last meeting just two years ago, he asked me questions that I needed to ask myself, supervised my graduate theses, taught me how to teach and lived and sang and
Jun 2016
The following words of torah were shared this week in Utah as we gathered 182 Heritage members and their spouses for their Summer Institute, MADREGOT: Stepping Up Your Leadership. In this week’s parsha, Shelach, Moshe sends scouts to bring back reports of Canaan — the nature of the land, its strengths and limitations and samples of its produce. Most of the scouts bring back reports that the land is magnificent,
Jun 2016
At first glance, many of the women who completed the Wexner Graduate Fellowship (WGF) seem to be at the top of their game. They are running organizations, teaching at the highest levels and represented in professional Jewish life in powerful ways. Anyone might guess that these women are “leaning in” to their careers; who would have thought that they would be so eager to share and glean support from one
I entered the Wexner Heritage program as a passionate lay leader, thirsty for knowledge and innovative thinking. By the end of the program, I was ready to take my leadership experience to the next level and I began to explore the impact I could have as a Jewish professional. It was no surprise to learn that Jewish professionals spend a lot of time worrying about the fate of the