When students return to CU this fall, theyll have more opportunities for Jewish education. The university administration has created a Jewish studies department, naming David Shneer its director.
Shneer spent the previous seven years at DU as an associate professor of history and as the director of the Center for Judaic Studies.
I was happy at DU, Shneer said, adding that he had no interest in applying for the CU job. But the chair of the search committee kept prodding him to submit an application.
Through the course of many conversations and two-and-a-half days of interviewing, both parties arrived at the same conclusion.
Some of my motivations for accepting the job were the size; CU is five times the size of DU, says Shneer.
While the Jewish students make up about six percent of the undergraduate population at CU (compared to 20% at DU), the overall population reaches 1,500 nearly twice the number at DU.
Case in point: when Shneer offered a Jewish history class at DU, he might have had 15 students sign up. By contrast, Im offering a basic introduction to Jewish history class at CU in the fall and it was added to the books late because I was hired in late March. It hit its cap of 70 students and has 16 on the wait list. Its unheard of.
The class doesnt even fulfill any student requirements. Its just a regular history class. Theres clearly pent up student demand for this kind of work.
Zilla Goodman, a senior instructor in Hebrew and Jewish studies at CU has been on staff for four years. Her classes, too, are filled to capacity with wait lists. In the past, shes offered just first- and second-year Hebrew, but an increased demand has prompted her to add a year-long third-level class.
Goodman compares CU to other renowned universities.
At Stanford, they get five, four in a [Hebrew] class. At CU, I have two first-year sections with 25 students per class.
Currently, CU offers a certificate in Jewish studies. With the advent of the new Jewish studies department, Shneer says he hopes to offer students a Jewish studies major in several years. When asked why not sooner, he replies, The problem is, if you donhave people dedicated to Jewish studies, its hard to be intellectually honest to a student to offer a major.
Over the course of the next two years, Shneer will hire two additional full-time professors trained in Jewish studies.
With four people offering courses, its easy to say to a student, we can offer you the education and integrity for a major.
For now, Shneer says hell focus on providing students with a minor in Jewish studies.
CU is one of the few major research universities nationally that has not had a vibrant Jewish studies program.
I think that with a Jewish studies program at CU, more Jewish students nationally are going to look at Boulder as a place to come to study, said Shneer. I predict that five years from now, the six percent Jewish student population will double.
At that point, Shneer believes CU will be positioned for explosive growth within the department. But to fully compete with national programs like those at Brandeis, Indiana, NYU and Michigan, it will take outside funding and community assistance.
The universitys initial commitment of three tenured positions is a huge investment. Its their opening bid, so to speak, he said. Then its up to me, the development officers and faculty to say to the local community, do you want this place to be national? Thats where the community-university partnership has to kick in.
Until then, Shneer, who still lives in Denver, says hell become a familiar face around campus and town. Just because Im not living in Boulder doesnt mean Im not going to be an active, visible member of the Jewish community here.
He anticipates long hours that will keep him at work long after the buses stop running.
So if any of your readers want to put me up on their couch, thatd be great!
