Welcome back to Jewish Studies - Fall 2025
Greetings! We are very excited to start a new school year with the beginning of the Fall 2025 semester!
My name is Ari Linden and I’m an associate professor of German Studies. This year, I’m stepping in as Interim Director of Jewish Studies, a program that I’ve been involved with since joining KU in 2013. I have taught courses in the area of German Jewish intellectual history, and my research agenda largely focuses on this field as well. I’ve watched the Jewish Studies Program grow immensely since my time at KU began and I’m excited to take on this leadership role and to be surrounded by such a vibrant and talented community of scholars and students.
My regular office hours will be on Tuesdays from 12-2pm in Wescoe 4017D, but if that's not a good time for you, please don’t hesitate to set up a time to meet with me in my office—I sincerely look forward to meeting all of you!
Welcome new staff & faculty!
We are happy to welcome our new student Program Assistant, Madison Petter. Madison is a visual communication design major in her sophomore year and a member of the Kappa Delta Chi sorority. She is also a KJKH DJ (DJ Mad-Mouse) on Friday afternoons - so be sure to tune in. Dr. Samantha Cooper is our new Beren Assistant Professor of Jewish Studies. She is a historical musicologist who specializes in American Jewish cultural history and is teaching a new course on music in Jewish history this fall. Noa Savir is our Hebrew Language Specialist who is teaching all levels of Hebrew; some of you might already know Noa from her time working at KU Hillel. We are thrilled to have them all join our program.
Please invite your friends to join our community!
We offer a BA (major) and a minor in Jewish Studies. These degrees complement majors in other programs like History, Political Science, and Religious Studies. If you are enrolled in language courses like Hebrew, Arabic, or Russian, and you plan to take four years of a language, you will be very close to fulfilling the minor requirements. Dr. Rami Zeedan, Director of Undergraduate Studies, and JD Smith, Academic Advisor to Jewish Studies, are happy to help you navigate your learning experience. To make an appointment and discuss your future, email Rami or JD today. To learn more about our offerings, please visit the Academic Catalog here.
Funding for Jewish Studies Majors & Minors
The Danciger Fund of the Jewish Community Foundation of Greater Kansas City supports students by offering several merit-based and need-based awards. The Harvey Bodker Study Abroad Award and the Miller Fund provide support for study abroad in Israel. The David and Sharyn Katzman Award recognizes a graduating major in Jewish Studies and the new Shelley M. Rissien Fund supports the study of the Hebrew language.
These awards are intended to provide financial support to undergraduate students with interests in Jewish Studies – primarily Jewish Studies majors and minors. Please email jewishstudies@ku.edu with any questions.
Fall Courses
We are offering an exciting array of classes this semester:
- Beginning, Intermediate, & Independent Studies of the Hebrew Language with Noa Savir
- The Israeli Palestinian Conflict with Omri Senderowicz
- Israel from Idea to Statehood with Omri Senderowicz
- First Year Seminar: Life, Death, & Afterlife in Modern Israeli Society with Rami Zeedan
- Politics & Government of Israel with Rami Zeedan
- Mystical Traditions in Judaism with Bogi Perelmutter
- Hitler & Nazi Germany with Shelly Cline
- Ethics & the Holocaust with Shelly Cline
- Jews, Christians, & Muslims with Sam Brody
- Understanding the Bible with David Woodington
- The Spanish Inquisition with Luis Corteguera & Patricia Manning
- Music & Jewish History with Samantha Cooper
In addition to our regularly scheduled classes, we are pleased to offer our students independent studies, Jewish Studies Seminar (the senior capstone), and Jewish Studies Service Learning. To check out our course offerings, please head over to the Jewish Studies website. If your desired course is already full, contact us and we can help you find a solution.
Events
For students, we host a series of monthly events, which are announced on our social media and through monthly newsletters. If you’re not following us on Instagram, now is the time to do so! We will kick the year off with an Open House. Please join us in the Jewish Studies suite (Wescoe 4017) on Wednesday, September 3, 11:00AM - 1:00PM. We will serve lunch and there will be opportunities to chat with your fellow students and Jewish Studies staff and faculty.
We look forward to another amazing year in the Jewish Studies Program. Please visit us. We would love to see you and tell you more about what we do and who we are!
Sincerely,
