Tagged Brandeis University

Jewish studies conference celebrates 50 years of explosive growth in the field

A stunning new facsimile of the 14th-century Sarajevo Hagaddah was on display, and for sale, by the National Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina,in the exhibit hall at the Association of Jewish Studies convention. ( Penny Schwartz)

BOSTON (JTA) — Diversity and inclusion were among the hot topics at the 50th annual convention of the Association of Jewish Studies, where some 1,200 Jewish studies scholars gathered for a three-day conference that began here Sunday. Fifty years to the month after a handful of scholars in the… Read more »

Brandeis professors: Verified information trumps fake news

Brandeis professor Eileen McNamara, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, left, talks with Susan Cole, Myrna Silver, Ellen Adelstein and Judy Norris at the Brandeis University on Wheels event at the Tucson Jewish Community Center on Jan. 8. (Debe Campbell)

The best defense against today’s era of “fake news” is to counter misinformation with accurate information. That’s the remedy offered by two speakers at the recent Brandeis University on Wheels lecture hosted by the Tucson Chapter of Brandeis National Committee and the Tucson Jewish Community Center. Brandeis University professors… Read more »

Journalism professors to explore election, fake news at Brandeis ‘University on Wheels’

Eileen McNamara, left, and Maura Jane Farrelly, Ph.D.

The Tucson Chapter of Brandeis National Committee and the Tucson Jewish Community Center will sponsor a BNC University On Wheels program next month, “From Election to Investigation and all the ‘Fake News’ in Between: Media Coverage of This Presidency.” Eileen McNamara, Brandeis University professor of the practice of journalism… Read more »

Beating health scares, Jonathan Sarna seals status as rock star Jewish historian

Jonathan Sarna at Brandeis University, his undergraduate alma mater and where he has taught for more than 25 years, May 10, 2016. (Uriel Heilman)

WALTHAM, Mass. (JTA) – When Jonathan Sarna was diagnosed with esophageal cancer in 1999 at the age of 44, it changed his life. Already a highly regarded historian at Brandeis University, Sarna was in the midst of writing his seminal study of American Jewish history when he realized with… Read more »

Amid Chinese influx, Brandeis considers its Jewish identity

Brandeis Asian Club: A project of the Brandeis Asian American Student Association aims to raise awareness about sterotyping at Brandeis. (Uriel Heilman)

WALTHAM, Mass. (JTA) – When Jeff Wang was applying to U.S. colleges more than two years ago from his home near Shanghai, Brandeis University was a top choice. Like many Chinese students now at Brandeis, he had discovered the university on Chinese Internet forums that touted the school’s academic rankings and its… Read more »

Pew survey of U.S. Jews: soaring intermarriage, assimilation rates

NEW YORK (JTA) — There are a lot more Jews in America than you may have thought — an estimated 6.8 million, according to a new study. But a growing proportion of them are unlikely to raise their children Jewish or connect with Jewish institutions. The proportion of Jews… Read more »

At Brandeis, a new generation rekindles enduring bonds

The “Seeking Kin” column aims to help reunite long-lost relatives and friends. BALTIMORE (JTA) – Teenagers Mark Matsuki and Leon Feldman came to study in the Boston area this summer as strangers and left as friends, unintentionally regrafting family-like branches of a tree that first took root four generations… Read more »

New study offers tips on engaging Jewish teens

NEW YORK (JTA) — Trying to interest teenagers in activities is difficult, parents and teachers know well, especially given what technology has done to the attention spans of young people. So how to get them to partake in doing Jewish over other pursuits? The Jim Joseph Foundation commissioned two… Read more »

Brandeis University arts expert to present ‘Truth or Beauty’

Scott Edmiston

The Brandeis National Committee will host its annual University on Wheels event on Thursday, Feb. 7, at 9 a.m. at Skyline Country Club. Scott Edmiston, director of the Office of the Arts at Brandeis University, will speak on: “Truth or Beauty: The Need for Art in the 21st Century.”… Read more »

Op-Ed: Education is key in a changing U.S. Jews-Israel relationship

WALTHAM, Mass. (JTA) — The relationship between American and Israeli Jews is changing. For most of Israel’s history, the American Jewish community was larger, wealthier and more powerful than its “poor cousin” in the Middle East, but now the differences between the two communities have greatly narrowed. More Jews… Read more »