University of Judaism
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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| Motto | The American Jewish University of Tomorrow |
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| Established | 1947 |
| Type | Private |
| President | Rabbi Robert Wexler, Ph.D |
| Location | Bel-Air, Los Angeles, California, USA |
| Campus | Urban |
| Website | www.uj.edu |
The University of Judaism, informally known as the UJ, is a Jewish, non-denominational and highly eclectic institution. Its largest component is its Department of Continuing Education in which 8,000 students are enrolled annually in non-credit granting courses. The UJ's academic division includes an undergraduate program leading to a B.A. degree, a graduate school of education, a graduate school of management and the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies (a Conservative Jewish rabbinical seminary). The UJ also has three important "think tanks," the Center for Israeli Studies (CIS), the Sigi Ziering Institute: Exploring the Ethical and Religious Implications of the Holocaust, and the Whizin Center for the Jewish Future.
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[edit] Programs of study
[edit] The College of Arts and Sciences
The College of Arts and Sciences is the program of undergraduate study at the UJ. The College boasts one of the lowest student-to-faculty ratios in the country: 7-1. Class size is small averaging fewer 20 students per course.
The academic program itself at the College grants the Bachelor of Arts degree. The core curriculum consists of over half the required credits during a student's time at the College, and consists of the study of Western, non-Western, and Jewish civilizations, foreign language studies (often Hebrew), arts, science, math, and computer study. Several academic majors and minors are offered:
- Bioethics, Business, English and Literature, Jewish Studies, Journalism, Liberal Studies, Literature and Politics, Political Science, Psychology, and U.S. Public Policy
The College also permits students to design their own majors, minors, and individualized programs of study in consultation with their academic advisor. The College encourages students to take leadership role not just in student organizations but in social, political, and religious work in the greater Los Angeles community.
Graduates of this program have gone on to advanced degrees at institutions such as Harvard, Columbia, UCLA, and Georgetown.
[edit] Graduate study
[edit] The Lieber School of Graduate Studies
The Lieber School of Graduate Studies offers programs in Nonprofit Management and Jewish Communal Studies. Students may earn a Master of Business Administration degree in Nonprofit Management, or students who have already earned a Master of Arts degree in some other field may earn an M.A. in Nonprofit Management. The Lieber School also offers an M.A. in Jewish Communal Studies, which consists of studies of management skills as well as Jewish texts, history, and sociology.
The M.B.A. can be combined with the M.A. in Jewish Communal Studies and the other graduate degrees (see below).
Graduates of this program take leadership positions in the management of a variety of non-profit organizations.
[edit] The Fingerhut School of Education
The Fingerhut School of Education offers a Master of Arts in Education degree, in which students can choose to focus on Administration, Curriculum and Instruction, or Jewish Educational Foundations. Students in the M.A.Ed. program are also awarded a degree of Bachelor of Literature (B.Lit) in Hebrew Letters, focusing on Bible, Rabbinic Literature, Hebrew, or Jewish Philosophy. In addition, the School offers the Master of Arts in Teaching degree which may be pursued on a part time basis.
[edit] The Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies
See main article: Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies
In addition to Rabbinic ordination recognized by the Rabbinical Assembly of Conservative Judaism, the Ziegler School offers programs culminating in the awarding of a Master of Arts in Rabbinic Studies. This degree may be combined with the M.A.Ed. or M.B.A. programs.
[edit] Continuing Education
The UJ offers many programs of study through its Continuing Education department. These studies most often take the form of individual classes generally taken simply for personal enjoyment and edification. Classes are offered in language studies, Jewish studies, literature, fine arts, dance and fitness, performance arts, and other varied areas. One of its largest programs is the annual Public Lecture Series held at the Universal Studio's Amphitheater and attended by five to six thousand series ticket holders. Featured speakers have included President Bill Clinton, Secretaries of State, Henry Kissinger, Madlyn Albright and Colin Powell, as well as Israeli prime ministers Ehud Barak and Shimon Peres.
[edit] History of the UJ
The University of Judaism was founded in 1947. The spiritual founder was Dr. Mordecai Kaplan, a Jewish thinker and philosopher who wanted to create an institution representing the diversity of Judaic expression in the United States. Initially a project of the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York City and the Bureau of Jewish Education of Los Angeles, the UJ became an independent institution in the 1970's. It became officially non-demoninational with the ascension to the presidency of Dr. Robert Wexler in 1992. Dr. Wexler was preceded in the presidency by Dr. Simon Greenberg (1947-1963) and Dr. David Lieber (1963-1992).
[edit] Campus resources
The Ostrow Library boasts over 120,000 volumes, extensive electronic resources, and contains one of the West Coast's largest collections of Judaica.
The Platt and Borstein Art Galleries play host to many major exhibitions, both of Jewish and non-Jewish art, and is one of Los Angeles's important art galleries.
The Smalley Sculpture Garden on the campus grounds has a collection that includes the work of well-known contemporary sculptors.
The Gindi Auditorium is the setting of many concerts, celebrations, and other programs.
The Max and Pauline Zimmer Conference Center is a 96 acre (388,000 m²) campus in Ojai, California. It is home to Camp Ramah of California.
[edit] Faculty and staff
This list is not an exhaustive list of all faculty and staff; it is a representation of a small portion of the faculty and staff of the University of Judaism.
- Rabbi Robert Wexler, Ph.D. (President)
- Rabbi David Lieber, Ph.D. (President Emeritus)
- Mark Bookman, J.D. (Senior Vice-President and CAO)
- Rabbi Bradley Shavit Artson (Vice President and Dean of the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies)
- Dr. Gady Levy (Vice President and Dean of the Department of Continuing Education)
- Rabbi Jay Strear (Vice President for Development)
- Zofia Yalovsky (Vice President and COO)
- Iris Waskow (Senior Director of Communications)
- Nina Lieberman Giladi (Dean of the School of Management)
- Dr. Sam Edelman (Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences)
- Rami Wernik (Dean of the Fingerhut School of Education)
- Rabbi Elliot Dorff, Ph.D. (Rector and Distinguished Professor of Jewish Philosophy)
- Dr. Ziony Zevit (Distinguished Professor of Bible and Northwest Semitics)
- Dr. Ron Wolfson (Professor of Education)
- Dr. Aryeh Cohen (Associate Professor of Rabbinic Literature)
- Rabbi Gail Labovitz, Ph.D. (Chair and Assistant Professor of Rabbinic Literature)
