JTS Alumni in the World: Scholarship and Impact
JTS ALUMNI IN THE WORLD: SCHOLARSHIP AND IMPACT
SUMMER 2024 LEARNING SERIES
Mondays, June 17–August 12, 2024
1:00–2:30 p.m. ET
Our esteemed JTS alumni are making important contributions through their work as scholars and thought leaders in their fields. Join them this summer for nine outstanding learning sessions. Through their engagement with Jewish text, history, and thought, they are enhancing the spiritual and personal lives of individuals, building more inclusive communities, and preparing the leaders of tomorrow, ensuring a stronger Jewish future.
Session Topics and Faculty
JUNE 17
JEWS IN THE AMERICAN POLITICAL AND PUBLIC SQUARE
With Dr. Lauren Strauss (Kekst Graduate School ’04), Professor of Modern Jewish History, American University
JUNE 24
RELIGIOUS MISCONCEPTIONS: AMERICAN JEWS AND THE POLITICS OF ABORTION
With Dr. Rachel Kranson (Kekst Graduate School ’00), Associate Professor of Religious Studies and Director of Jewish Studies, University of Pittsburgh
JULY 1
JUDAISM IS ABOUT LOVE
With Rabbi Shai Held, PhD (Rabbinical School ’99 and Kekst Graduate School ’99), President and Dean, Hadar Institute
JULY 8
X TROOP: THE SECRET JEWISH COMMANDOS WHO HELPED DEFEAT THE NAZIS
With Dr. Leah Garrett (Kekst Graduate School ’99), Larry A. and Klara Silverstein Chair in Jewish Studies and Director of Hebrew and Jewish Studies, Hunter College, City University of New York
JULY 15
ZIONISM AND ANTISEMITISM ON CAMPUS AND BEYOND
With Dr. Michael Kay (Day School Leadership Training Institute ’08), Head of School, The Leffell School, and Rabbi Jason Rubenstein (Rabbinical School ’11 and Kekst Graduate School ‘10), Executive Director, Harvard Hillel. Co-sponsored by The William Davidson Graduate School of Jewish Education.
JULY 22
AMERICAN JEWISH-EVANGELICAL INTERFAITH RELATIONS AND THE ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN CONFLICT
With Dr. Amy Weiss (Kekst Graduate School ’07), Director of the Maurice Greenberg Center for Judaic Studies and Assistant Professor of Judaic Studies and History, University of Hartford
JULY 29
INNOVATIONS IN RITUAL AND HALAKHAH (LAW) AROUND JEWISH DIVORCE
With Rabbi Pamela Barmash, PhD (Rabbinical School ’90), Chair of the Committee on Jewish Law and Standards, The Rabbinical Assembly, and Professor of Hebrew Bible and Biblical Hebrew, Washington University in St. Louis, and Rabbi Karen Reiss Medwed, PhD (Rabbinical School ’95 and List College ’91), Member of the Joint Bet Din of the Conservative Movement and Senior Assistant Dean of Faculty Affairs and Network Engagement, Northeastern University College of Professional Studies
AUGUST 5
RABBI, WILL YOU DO OUR WEDDING? NEW APPROACHES TO WORKING WITH INTERFAITH COUPLES
With Rabbi Aaron Brusso (Kekst Graduate School ’01 and Rabbinical School ’00), Rabbi of Bet Torah, Mt. Kisco, NY
AUGUST 12
A NEW UNDERSTANDING OF Betzelem Elohim: BIBLICAL TEXT THROUGH THE LENS OF DISABILITY STUDIES
With Dr. Ora Horn Prouser (Kekst Graduate School ’91 and Seminary College ‘82), CEO and Academic Dean, Academy for Jewish Religion
Note: Each Monday series has its own Zoom link. Please register for the series in order to receive the correct Zoom link for the summer 2024 series.
