Siegal College History - 1920s to 1980s

(With thanks to Bea Stadler z”l for her article, “A Unique Institution in the Western Reserve” for much of the content of this history and to Dr. David Ariel, who wrote “The History of Siegal College” in 2007.)

In 1925, the earliest predecessor of the Laura and Alvin Siegal College of Judaic Studies, Beth Midrash L’Morim, a Hebrew teacher training school, was founded by Abraham Friedland, the first director of the Bureau of Jewish Education and a prominent Hebrew poet and educator. It was located near East Boulevard & 105th Street, the epicenter of the Jewish community in the early 1900s. At the same time, a Jewish Teacher’s Institute was founded by Rabbis Abba Hillel Silver, Louis Wolsey and Solomon Goldman for the purpose of training Sunday school teachers. In 1947, the two teacher training organizations merged to become the Cleveland Institute of Jewish Studies under the leadership of Nathan Brilliant, Director of the Bureau of Jewish Education.

In 1952, the Institute became an independent agency with its own Board of Governors and its own dean, Dr. Jacob Kabakoff. In 1952, along with the Bureau of Jewish Education, the school moved into its new home, Bet Friedland on Taylor Road.

The goals of the Institute were not that different from the College’s goals today;
• To provide training for new and existing teachers in the Jewish schools in the community
• To issue teaching certificates to qualified teachers
• To provide and sponsor educational activities to adults who wanted to enrich their Jewish knowledge and to enhance their understanding of Jewish life

In 1959, at the height of the baby boom, the Bureau of Jewish Education recommended converting the Institute of Jewish Studies into a college of Jewish Studies. In 1964, following provisional accreditation by the American Association of Hebrew Teachers Colleges, the Institute formally became the Cleveland College of Jewish Studies. The focus of the new College was to continue to address the dire shortage of Jewish teachers and educating teachers to work with the burgeoning number of students enrolled in afternoon and weekend synagogue schools.

During the 1960s, the College began to offer courses in modern Hebrew to teachers as well as adult learners. The classes quickly caught on and enrollment at the College increased dramatically. Classes in Judaic Studies were added and grew even faster than the Hebrew classes. A new student base of adult learners began to emerge.

In those days, the Cleveland College of Jewish Studies was located on South Taylor Road and shared a building with the Bureau of Jewish Education. The school continued to expand, due to its enlarged scope and range of activities. As a result of these new programs, the College received accreditation by the American Association of Hebrew Teachers Colleges and the National Board of License and authorization by the Board of Regents of the State of Ohio to confer Baccalaureate and Master’s degrees.

Siegal College History - 1980s to 1990s

As a result of its dramatic growth, the College needed a new home. In the words of Rebecca Brickner, founder of the College’s Women’s Association which later became the Friends of the Library, “The College needs a home of its own badly. It needs its own facility and its own building. We are bursting at the seams. We shall bend every effort toward the building of this home.” A goal of $2,500,000 was set for the new building to be erected on donated land on Shaker Boulevard. With the help of a band of committed leaders, the community set out to build a new home for the Cleveland College of Jewish Studies and Akiva High School.

Much credit for the success of that effort must be given to Bennet Kleinman who was chair of the board at that time and worked tirelessly to make the building a reality along with Dr. Martin Goldstein, president of the College. Hundreds of people assisted in this effort, including the Women’s Association, led by Rebecca Brickner. The eloquent Mrs. Brickner reminded her members that “from the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem to this day, education became the life-line of Jewish survival. Today in America, we are deeply concerned with the survival of our heritage. Without our own special education we become hollow Jews.”

In 1975, the College moved into its new home, which it still occupies today. It also received additional accreditation from the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools to be a Master’s degree-granting institution.

The College saw tremendous growth for many years after its move. It had a stellar reputation throughout the country and offered hundreds of courses including Hebrew language, Jewish history, Jewish thought, rabbinics, Bible, literature and history. Renowned professors, loyal staff, countless leaders and donors and thousands of teachers, students and adult learners took classes and walked the halls of the Cleveland College of Jewish Studies. At one time, nearly 90% of the religious and Hebrew school teachers and educational directors in the city were graduates or students at the College. In addition, the College provided classes for hundreds of students who have since left Cleveland and are in important posts in Jewish Communal Service and education throughout the United States, Canada and Israel.

In 1981, Dr. Meir Ben-Horin, President of the College resigned, and Dr. Eli Reshotko, Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Case Western Reserve University became the acting president. During this period, the board of the College re-evaluated its mission and adopted four goals to guide the College forward:
• To continue to offer a high level adult Jewish education program
• To develop educational programs for current and potential teachers
• To develop educational programs for community groups, temples, synagogues and outreach programs in the community
• To continue to develop the College’s role as the central address of Jewish higher learning in Cleveland

In 1982, Dr. David Ariel was named President of the College. His charge was to implement the new goals and to increase enrollment at the College. The number of students enrolled in classes and those who attended continuing education and cultural programs grew rapidly. Faculty size increased from two to five fulltime faculty and the adjunct faculty grew as well. The College began to attract students from around the region and the country for both the Bachelor and Master of Arts in Judaic Studies. Enrollment in the Department of Jewish Education grew as well.

In the 1980s and the 1990s, several new initiatives were undertaken at the College. The Department of Jewish Education sponsored the Cleveland Fellows Program, a graduate program in Jewish education that provided its graduates with funded positions within congregations, school and communal agencies. The Executive Educators program was created to promote the professional growth of educators. The Family Educator program furthered the growth of educators working in family education positions within congregations. Semester-long classes were offered throughout the year and new initiatives including home study groups, customized learning programs for Jewish organizations, professional continuing education courses for communal professionals, senior learning programs and outreach to the Jewish communities of Akron and Canton were also added.

Lectures by prominent scholars and personalities, and exhibits on historical events in Jewish life drew hundreds of community members.

Siegal College History - 1990s to Today

In 1993 the College’s board adopted a new strategic plan. It emphasized the use of technology to reach students, and in 1995, the College established the first live, interactive videoconferencing program in Jewish Studies in the country. Students in Milwaukee were able to obtain a three-year Master of Arts in Judaic Studies. In ensuing years, partnerships were also forged with bureaus of Jewish education in Kansas City, Houston, Dallas, West Palm Beach, Miami and Atlanta.

In 2002, the Cleveland College of Jewish Studies underwent another name change – to honor Laura and Alvin Siegal, generous benefactors, who had long supported Jewish education. In their honor, the College was renamed the Laura and Alvin Siegal College of Judaic Studies.

In 2007, Dr. Ariel resigned from his position and Dr. Brian Amkraut was appointed Provost of the College. Today, the College continues to be a robust conduit for Jewish learning. To best serve the higher education needs of  Northeast Ohio, the College has partnered with a number of other colleges and universities including Cuyahoga Community College, John Carroll University, Cleveland State University and most recently, Case Western Reserve University, Notre Dame College and the University of Akron.

In the spring of 2009, a new program dubbed “Spring Evenings at the College” was introduced. It includes lectures, discussions and films with experts from the College faculty and throughout the world. The College now offers four session courses, six-week courses and full semester courses. The College has offered a community-wide month of study, Hodesh Limud for three consecutive years since 2006. It also offered a wide variety of adult education courses in topics ranging from Jewish history and Jewish thought to rabbinic literature and Yiddish theater. As always, Hebrew language and literature play a major role in the College’s offerings.

The College continues to pioneer means of extending its classroom beyond the geographical constraints of Cleveland and currently offers its full range of academic programming to students throughout North America through a virtual classroom. Students join College courses by videoconferencing over their own computers in a fully live and interactive learning experience. Through the use of computer technology, the College creates a traditional classroom environment that provides a dedicated level of interaction between students and faculty.

At Siegal College’s most recent commencement exercises in June, two students received Bachelor of Arts degrees in Judaic Studies and eighteen received Master’s degrees in addition to the many certificates and awards that were presented. Many of these students pursued their course of study through videoconferencing.

While the College has changed its name, location and leadership through the years, its core mission remains: promoting the study of Judaism by transmitting the best of classical Jewish learning and modern scholarship, preparing Jewish educators and other communal professionals, facilitating the Jewish journey of adult learners, serving as the Jewish and Hebrew language higher education resource to the community and providing a common ground for people of diverse backgrounds.