Jewish Studies Spring 2024 Newsletter
Dear students, staff, faculty, friends, and families:
The Spring 2024 semester has concluded, and we are officially on summer break! Before we meet again with excitement for the 2024-25 school year, I would like to use this opportunity to acknowledge our graduates, thank our students for their hard work and dedication, provide news of recent award winners, reflect on the past semester, and share information on what is to come in the Fall.
The Spring 2024 semester has concluded, and we are officially on summer break! Before we meet again with excitement for the 2024-25 school year, I would like to use this opportunity to acknowledge our graduates, provide news of recent award winners reflect on the past semester, share information on what is to come in the Fall, and thank you for your continued support of Jewish Studies.
2024 Spring and Fall Graduation
Congratulations to the Spring 2024 graduating class! The Jewish Studies Graduation Recognition and Award Ceremony was held on Friday, May 10th, 2024. During this time, we honored students who graduated or will graduate in the 2024 academic year, both Spring and Fall semesters.
Samantha Grofsky
BA Jewish Studies, Communications, minor Human Sexuality
Zac Kitay
BA Journalism, minor Jewish Studies
Jonathan Davis
BA History, minor Jewish Studies, Philosophy
Alexis Greenberg
BA Journalism, BSJ Strategic Communications, University Honors, minor Jewish Studies, Leadership Studies
Madeline Helms
BA Global and International Studies, minor History, Jewish Studies, Middle East Studies
Robert Metz
BA Political Science, minor Jewish Studies, Intelligence & National Security, Pre-Law
(Fall 2024)
Eli Richman
BA History, minor Jewish Studies (Fall 2024)
Congratulations to Alexis Greenberg and Zac Kitay, who were awarded the Danciger Service-Learning Award in Jewish Studies for their enthusiastic support and involvement with the Jewish Studies Program.
Many congratulations to Samantha Grofsky, who was awarded the David and Sharyn Katzman Award for her academic excellence and dedication to Jewish Studies. This award is presented by the faculty to a graduating Jewish Studies major who showcased growth and excellence in Jewish Studies. For her capstone titled: Jewish Summer Camps within the American Jewish Experience, Samantha worked with Jewish Studies Hebrew Coordinator, Ms. Shelley Rissen and documented how the system of secular summer camps was revamped through the lens of Jewish life.
A Thank You to our Students:
This academic year, we are happy to report that our small Jewish Studies Program at KU has grown. At the conclusion of the spring semester, we have six Jewish Studies BAs and 35 Jewish Studies minors. In addition, through our various courses, we serve students from other departments and schools at KU, with a total of 463 students enrolled in at least one Jewish Studies course. Thank you to our new majors and minors, Ryhs Taliaferro (BA) and John Hannigan (minor). It warms the heart to see more students joining the Jewish Studies Program this semester.
Spring 2024 Recap: Engaging with our Community
As you recall, in Fall 2023 we had a very busy agenda with events for everyone: students, staff, faculty, and the community. Spring 2024 was even busier!
In January, to kick off the semester for our students, we hosted our annual Jewish Studies Open House with coffee, bagels, and pastries. In March, Purim with Professionals brought students together with members of the Jewish professional community including the Midwest Center for Holocaust Education, KU Hillel, the Kansas City Jewish Chronicle, and the KU Career Center.
Throughout the semester we partnered with the KU community and the Lawrence Jewish Community Congregation to host visiting scholars and our own faculty experts. In February, we co-sponsored Dr. Rachel Gross (San Francisco State University) for the lecture Telling Our Stories Through Food - The Pickle Problem: The Deli Revival and American Jewish Religion. Dr. Shelly Cline, (Jewish Studies faculty and Historian and Director of Education at the Midwest Center for Holocaust Eduation) presented Life Beyond the Wall: Unpacking "The Zone of Interest” and Dr. Omri Senderowicz (Jewish Studies faculty) presented An Exemplary Non-Failure: The Socialist Experiment of the Kibbutz and Its End (1975-2020). In April, we hosted Dr. Avi Shilon, a historian who specializes in the field of Israel studies. Dr Shilon met with our campus community, visited one of our classes, and presented Israel at War: October 7th and the War in Gaza from a Historical Perspective at the LJCC. We also co-sponsored campus speaker, Dr. Sasha Senderovich, (University of Washington, Seattle) who presented How the Soviet Jew Was Made.
Our major event this year was the Jews in the Americas Conference. We had over 55 scholars from more than 11 countries including Latin America, North America, Europe and Asia. The event was well attended with more than 250 visitors, both in person and online. We hosted two keynote speakers: Dr. Sarah Imhoff (Indiana University, Bloomington) and Dr. Lyslie Nascimento (Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Brazil). Outreach to the greater community of Northeast Kansas was an important component of this conference. We partnered with the Spencer Museum of Art to host a public reception and exhibition featuring Jewish artists, and music of Jewish American songwriters, performed by the student band, The Bigs. KU Hillel hosted the exhibit Homemaking: Building the Jewish Community of Kansas which explored the community building efforts of Jewish Kansans from the early 1900s to the present day.
In the News
Congratulations Dr. Bogi Perelmutter! Their works as the editor of the anthology Rosalind's Siblings: Fiction and Poetry Celebrating Scientists of Marginalized Genders, has earned them a finalist spot for the Lambda Literary Award in LGBTQ+ Anthology category and is longlisted for the BSFA Award and a Locus Recommended book! Well done, Dr. Perelmutter!
Dr. Omri Senderowicz has been awarded the 2024 Ben Halpern Best Dissertation Award. This award is given by the Association for Israel Studies for the best doctoral dissertation in Israel Studies approved during the 2023 calendar year. Dr. Senderowicz’s dissertation titled: From Society to Community Privatizing the Israeli Kibbutz (1975-2020). Congratulations, Dr. Senderowicz!
Looking Ahead to Fall 2024
Enrollment in Fall 2024 courses is well underway. Have you finished enrolling? As an interdisciplinary program, Jewish Studies has a wide variety of courses. Need help deciding what to take? Come speak with us. We are here to help. Here is a quick snapshot of the courses we are offering or cross-listing with other departments in Fall ‘24:
- Beginning, Intermediate, and Advanced Hebrew (HEBR 110, 210, 340)
- Hebrew in Song: Israeli Pop Music (HEBR 300, JWSH 300)
- Jews, Christians, and Muslims (JWSH 107)
- Understanding the Bible (JWSH 124)
- First year seminars: Jewish American Stories Through Literature, Letters, and Latkes (JWSH 176) and Life, Death, and Afterlife in Modern Israel (JWSH 177)
- Israeli Palestinian Conflict: An Intro (JWSH 329)
- Mystical Tradition in Judaism (JWSH 330)
- Hitler and Nazi Germany (JWSH 341)
- Graphic Novels as Memory (JWSH 348)
- Israel from Idea to Statehood (JWSH 410)
- Politics and Government of Israel (JWSH 420)
- Independent Study of Hebrew and Jewish Studies (HEBR 490, JWSH 490)
- Service Learning in Jewish Studies (JWSH 650)
We look forward to hosting more events in the Fall that offer our students opportunities to take a break, have a meal, connect with each other and members of the campus and regional community. For students, we will again offer a series of monthly events, including our bi-annual Open House, a film screening and expert discussion, a new Hebrew-focused event, and our Sufganiyot Social in December. For students, staff, faculty, and the community at large, stay tuned for co-sponsored events featuring our faculty and visiting scholars. We know these events foster important relationships and help our students and community learn, grow, and feel welcomed by KU Jewish Studies.
We head into summer break knowing we have accomplished a lot together. Each one of you, as part of our KU Jewish Studies community, have made this collective success possible.
I invite you to join us again for an exciting educational journey with high quality, engaging, and meaningful classes, join us for the upcoming Fall events, or stop by the Jewish Studies offices to chat. You are always welcome.
Stay safe and stay healthy and thank you for your continued support!
We look forward to seeing you soon!
Sincerely,
Dr. Rami Zeedan
Associate Professor of Israel Studies
Acting Director of the Jewish Studies Program