 |
|||||||||||
                     |
|
BY PRESIDENT DAVID M. GORDIS In November, Hebrew College underwent a five-year accreditation review by a team of outstanding academicians on behalf of the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC). Our last full, 10-year review was in 1998. As one of the accreditation team members was leaving after our final, successful meeting, she turned to us and observed that, compared to the institution she had read about in the 1998 review, the Hebrew College she had just completed studying was "unrecognizable."
This multiyear campaign is essential to meeting current and anticipated demand. Inquiries about the College's academic programs have doubled in the past year, and we hear from potential students all over the world. To cite just one example, our Rabbinical School was recently contacted by a young American soldier who has served one tour of duty in Afghanistan and is now serving in Iraq. He hopes to become a rabbi someday and to study here when his tour is up in 2005. Among our students enrolled in the Master of Arts in Jewish Studies and Master of Jewish Education degree programs, we are witnessing a new and robust mix from across the United States, including individuals from San Diego, Cal.; Chicago, Ill.; McAllen, Tex.; Asheville, N.C.; and Pittsburgh, Penn. The list—and resultant dynamic, diverse student body—keeps growing. There is much more to report about developments at Hebrew College. Several articles in this issue are devoted to one of the College's most important initiatives, the revitalization of the Hebrew language in North America. Sustaining Hebrew language skills and use has been a continuing motif throughout Jewish history. This is central to our commitment and part of Hebrew College's role as a major participant in the renaissance of Jewish life in this country, helping to strengthen the development of American Jewish culture. As our NEASC guest observed, Hebrew College is not the same institution that it was even five years ago. We are proud of the distance we have come and exhilarated about the broad range of quality programs and activities here at Newton Centre. It is my sincere hope that, after reading this issue of Hebrew College Today, you'll share our conviction that the most exciting chapter of Hebrew College's history is just beginning.
|
|||||||||
The comment is telling—and true. To say it has been a very busy and dynamic two years since Hebrew College moved to our Newton Centre campus is an understatement. Indeed, with the advent of our new Rabbinical School, increasing numbers of full-time graduate students, plans for our doctoral program in Jewish education well underway, thriving Prozdor high school, and highly successful Me'ah Graduate Institute and adult learning lecture series—as well as exciting initiatives such as the 