Initiated in 2000 with a certificate and master’s track, hc’s Jewish Special Education Program received a $1.5 million gift from Philadelphia philanthropist Bernard J. Korman this fall to endow a new professorship in Jewish Special Education.

"We’re hopeful that the creation of this faculty chair will ultimately lead to the development of a research and training center for Jewish Special Education at Hebrew College," says Korman, a Philadelphia philanthropist who has pledged an additional $150,000 annually for the next three years to help build infrastructure for the enhanced program.

Korman’s daughter, Paula MAJS’93, helped Hebrew College focus attention on special education and created the first special education concentration for her HC master’s degree program in the early 1990s, under the tutelage of Rose Bronstein P’41, BJEd’45, MHL’70. In 2005, she received the Sidney Hillson Memorial Award for her achievements in Jewish education.

Dr. Scott Sokol, Director of the Jewish Special Education Program, envisions that the new chair will not only guide curriculum development and research, but also serve as a liaison to Greater Boston Jewish community programs, where Jewish special education has become a priority

As these initiatives and Hebrew College’s professional development program gain momentum, Sokol predicts that the Greater Boston community will become a national focal point for Jewish special education, with Hebrew College in the lead: "We’re becoming the center for academic training of Jewish special educators as well as a force for advocacy for individuals with special needs."




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