The Latest From The Foundation

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

Back in 2012, the Israeli Consulate in Boston reached out to campuses, declaring March the “Month of the Israeli Woman” and providing a list of Israelis in the area who could speak to student audiences.  WGF alum Michelle Fisher (Class 10), Executive Director of the MIT Hillel, saw the list, but none of the women seemed appropriate for MIT.  Wanting still to support the endeavor, she remembered there were Wexner

From her first WGF Institute at Ocean Edge in 1997, Jenny (Solomon, Class 10) was asked if she knew WGFA Michelle Lynn-Sachs (Class 6).  After all, we both hailed from Dallas, Texas. Each of us attended college at Brown University. Raised in actively engaged Reform Jewish homes, we both began our graduate education at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion.  And, if that wasn’t enough, we even share a physical

As the Wexner Graduate Fellowship Alumni (WGFA) Community continues to grow and evolve, colleagues are tackling more and more “Big Issues” in their local, national and international Jewish communities.  As we endeavor to do so, extra resources have been developed to fortify our Wexner community’s internal health and strength.  Thanks to The Wexner Foundation’s partnership with the Jim Joseph Foundation, a year-long mentorship program was launched two years ago to

A few weeks back I ended my term as president of The JTA. But great news, our new president is now Wexner Heritage Alum (NY 1) David Eisner. This makes for the fourth Wexnerite in a row as president of The JTA. So Danny Krifcher (DC 03) begot Elisa Bildner (Metrowest NJ) who begot David Rudis who begot David Eisner. All of us are still trying to answer Les’ challenge,

“The most coveted title in the volunteer world – Immediate Past Chair”   – Bryan Kort, Wexner Heritage Alum, in a letter to his friend and co – Phoenix 09’er, Marc Lerner, on finishing his tenure as Synagogue President.  Bryan can be reached at bryankort@gmail.com.

Rabbi Judd Kruger Levingston, Ph.D., is an alumnus of The Wexner Graduate Fellowship (Class I) and serves as Director of Jewish Studies at Jack M. Barrack Hebrew Academy (formerly Akiba Hebrew Academy) in the Philadelphia area.  He is the author of Sowing the Seeds of Character: The Moral Education of Adolescents in Public and Private Schools (Praeger/Greenwood, 2009). He is incoming Vice President of Education at the Germantown Jewish Centre.

Naomi is a proud alumna of the Wexner Graduate Fellowship, Class XIII.  She is currently an Assistant Professor in Hebrew and Israeli Culture at The Ohio State University.  Naomi can be reached at brenner.108@osu.edu. Recently, I was asked to answer questions and facilitate a discussion after a campus screening of the Israeli animated film Waltz with Bashir on Yom Hazikaron, Israel’s Memorial Day.  “College students won’t show up at a

Paula is an alumna of the Wexner Graduate Fellowship, Class XI, and has served as rabbi at the Orangetown Jewish Center in Orangeburg, New York since ordination from JTS in 2004.  Paula can be reached at:  pmdrill@aol.com. When Jordan and I began his bar mitzvah lessons, I took a Torah from the ark, placed it into Jordan’s arms and asked him to repeat after me, “This is MY Torah.”  I

Allison is an alumna of the Wexner Graduate Fellowship, Class XIV, and a Jewish Educator. She is currently working with a fellow Class XIV Graduate Fellowship alumna, Orit Kent, on the Beit Midrash Research Project at Brandeis University, developing, researching, and teaching a “Havruta-Inspired Pedagogy.” Allison can be reached at alltcook@earthlink.net. Last month I made what felt like a triumphant return to Israel after too many years. This time I