The Katz Center for Advanced Judaic Studies at Penn. (Photo credit: wikicommons/NMGiovannucci)
The University of Pennsylvania’s Katz Center for Judaic Studies just received a life-changing gift from one of its own.
The estate of Louise Strauss, a 1982 Penn graduate, is donating $21 million to the school’s Katz Center for Advanced Judaic Studies, the Rare Judaica Acquisitions Endowment Fund in the Penn Libraries and Morris Arboretum & Gardens, the school announced in September.
Joshua Teplitsky, the Joseph Meyerhoff Chair in Modern Jewish History and Ruth Meltzer Director of the Jewish Studies Program, said there are two components to this gift that will radically expand the capabilities of the department.
“The first part is an endowed professorship, and the second part is a separate fund that is dedicated to supporting graduate student training. Those are two complementary ingredients in creating the long-term sustainability of Jewish Studies at Penn,” he said.
Teplitsky said that the endowed professorship will allow the school to determine what part of Jewish Studies it wants to expand. That professor will be responsible for large lectures and traditional seminars, as well as working with students in research.
Funds going to supporting graduate student training will also be a huge help for Penn’s Jewish Studies department.
“Becoming a scholar is a lengthy and heavy process that can be time-consuming, and we expect our graduate students to learn new languages, and that often requires them taking summer courses abroad in specialized places,” Teplitsky said. “Some graduate students, as they work on their dissertations, have to travel to archives around the world, and that can be really pricey. … I’m really excited. It’s also going to allow graduate student training to not just be a solitary activity.”
Teplitsky said that the gift will also allow the university to start a conference for graduate students in the field of Jewish studies from across the country. The idea is to have an annual meeting in Philadelphia where research will be presented and feedback can be exchanged. This will help expand the field of Jewish studies as a whole, not just at Penn.
The gift will also enhance the university’s ability to acquire items for its Judaica collections, which will allow the already-acclaimed collection to grow even more, said Penn Vice Provost and Director of Libraries Brigitte Weinsteiger.
“Louise’s extraordinary gift enables Penn Libraries to grow its rare Judaica Collections in unprecedented ways,” she said. “Her years of volunteering alongside Schottenstein-Jesselson Curator of Judaica Collections Arthur Kiron reflect the same devotion that now lives on in her legacy, advancing our mission to preserve and share Jewish life across time and around the globe.”
The gift will also enhance the Morris Arboretum and Gardens at Penn, although the majority of the donation will be used for Jewish programming.
Penn President J. Larry Jameson said that this gift will serve to better the university as a whole, as well as the region’s Jewish community.
“Louise Strauss’ generous legacy gift will have a lasting impact across multiple pillars of Penn’s academic mission,” he said. “We are grateful for her commitment to provide support that will strengthen our entire community — from advancing Jewish studies scholarship and preserving rare historical materials to supporting plant science research.”
Strauss, who graduated in 1982, was a member of the Katz Center Board of Advisors, as was her mother, who also graduated from Penn. This gift, said Professor of Hebrew and Semitic Languages and Literature and Director of the Katz Center Steven Weitzman, is in line with who Strauss was.
“This final act from Louise follows a life of profound generosity, devotion to scholarship and sustained public service,” he said. “She was a very self-effacing person, but all that she has done to support others is something that deserves to be honored for generations to come.”