76.
As noted previously, Rabbi Yaakov Bleich is closing his residential
programs for children from unstable homes.
Rabbi Moshe Asman, an independent Chabad rabbi, maintains a home for such
children, accommodating 25 youngsters.
77.
Igor Turov directs a program in Jewish studies at the
National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy (NaUKMA) (Ukr:
Національний
університет «Києво-Могилянська
академія» -
НаУКМA). The program, said Dr. Turov, exists within the
KMA Department of History, although its course offerings include subject matter
in other disciplines as well. About 20 courses
are available, but not all of them are taught in any one given year.
In addition to Jewish history, the program also offers courses in Hebrew,
Yiddish, Jewish philosophy, Bible, Midrash, hasidism, and various aspects of the
Holocaust.
Between 20 and 30
different students, most of whom are majoring in Ukrainian history, currently are
enrolled in one or more of these courses, said Dr. Turov.
Those who are majoring in Jewish studies - usually one-third of the total
number enrolled in Jewish studies classes - must complete four Jewish-focus courses
for a degree, along with classes in a larger subject area, such as European history. Courses
in basic Hebrew and classic Jewish texts are mandatory for majors.
However, continued Dr. Turov, most students who wish to earn a Jewish studies
degree take ten to 15 Jewish-focus courses.
KMA is the only university in Ukraine to offer a degree program in Jewish studies,
Dr. Turov said.
In response to a
question, Dr. Turov said that 20 to 30 percent of all Jewish studies majors are
Jewish. Generally, he continued, great interest
in Jewish history exists among Ukrainian intellectuals, so one should not
be surprised at the proportion of non-Jews in these classes.
Prospects for employment after earning a degree in Jewish studies are
limited, stated Dr. Turov. Four of the 12
current lecturers in Jewish studies at KMA are themselves graduates of the KMA Jewish
studies program. Others have found employment
as lecturers or researchers at other institutions of higher education; however,
many of these positions are part-time. Several work in local Jewish community
organizations.
Dr. Igor Turov earned a Ph.D. in
history at Moscow State University of Oriental Studies.
He also did graduate work for two years at Hebrew University in Jerusalem,
studied Yiddish at Columbia University in New York, and completed a summer seminar
at Brandeis University for professors of Israel studies.
His current research is in hasidic teachings.
Photo: the writer.
The only steady
source of financial support for the KMA Jewish studies program is a grant from
the Ukrainian Va'ad,
replied Dr. Turov to a question. A grant
from the Pincus Fund of the Jewish Agency for Israel that supported work of KMA
Jewish studies students and lecturers in local Jewish day schools will end soon. The Jewish studies department receives no funding
from KMA itself. Dr. Turov said that he is
constantly seeking funds from various organizations and individuals.
78.
Iosif Akselrud is the Director of Hillel CASE, the section of
the Hillel student organization that oversees Hillel operations in Ukraine, Belarus,
Moldova, Georgia, Azerbaijan, and Uzbekistan.
He is less concerned with specific Hillel programs in Kyiv than with overall management
issues, he said. He described his responsibilities
as fundraising, staff deployment and training, and other large questions concerning
the entire CASE area. Although aware of Hillel
operations in Kyiv, his role transcends local issues.
Aware of the writer's
interest in Donetsk, a city in eastern Ukraine, Mr. Akselrud stated that
a Hillel group had finally been formally established in that city, which hosts many
academic institutions. Vadym Rabynovych, an oligarch
of controversial background, has provided significant funding for the Kharkiv group
through United Jewish Community of Ukraine, another group that Mr. Akselrud also
directs.
Donetsk Hillel, continued Mr. Akselrud, has found a very capable
local director and had already sent two groups of students on Taglit (birthright
Israel) tours.
Another accomplishment,
Mr. Akselrud said, was the operation of a year-long course for Hillel madrichim
(leaders) that was conceived and operated as part of the JDC Buncher professional
leadership development program. Twenty
Hillel professionals - including people from Kyiv, Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk, and
Odesa - participated in this program and received diplomas.
The Hillel budget for the entire CASE
area requires $1.5 million annually, stated Mr. Akselrud.
At this point, he continued, $1.3 million is available.
Three organizations together - Hillel International, the Schusterman Foundation,
and JDC - have contributed $700,000. Mr.
Akselrud himself, one of the more accomplished professional fundraisers in the post-Soviet
states, has raised another $400,000, and the Genesis Philanthropy Group of Moscow
has contributed $200,000. About $80,000 is
needed for local programs, he said, and $120,000 is required elsewhere in the Hillel
CASE area.
Iosif Akselrud, a successful administrator
and fundraiser, is professionally involved in three different Ukrainian Jewish organizations
Hillel, United Jewish Community of Ukraine, and Limmud.
Photo: the writer.
As he has done on
previous occasions, Mr. Akselrud spoke with satisfaction of the local Hillel
board, a lay group that he initiated and continues to advise.
The 12-member Board meets twice annually, said Mr. Akselrud, and has set
$60,000 as its current fundraising goal.
It raised $45,000 for Hillel last year, he noted.
Additionally, some Hillel students are trying to raise funds for the organization.
Mr. Akselrud continues
to grapple with Jewish education programs within Hillel.
When Hillel was established in the post-Soviet states in the 1990's, student
interest in their Jewish heritage was very strong.
Few of them had any background in Judaism, and they were eager to learn what
their parents and nascent Jewish community organizations had been unable to teach
them. Hillel established various programs
in formal and informal Jewish education that appeared to sate their thirst for Jewish
knowledge. However, over time, student interest
in their heritage appeared to dissipate.
Searching for new approaches to Jewish education that might attract interest from
the current generation of Hillel members, Mr. Akselrud convened a committee of specialists
in Jewish education for young adults and then engaged Rabbi Pinchas Rosenfeld of
the Galitzky synagogue to develop a new education program. Mr. Akselrud expressed satisfaction
with Rabbi Rosenfeld's work.
More than 200
Jewish couples who met during Hillel activities have married during the past
four years, stated Mr. Akselrud. Whether
or not they wed other Hillel participants, most Hillel activists remain involved
in Jewish life long after they leave Hillel, Mr. Akselrud continued.
Unlike almost all other individuals interviewed by the writer during her
current travels in Ukraine, Mr. Akselrud said that he saw no interest in emigration
among Jewish young adults, no interest in aliyah to Israel.
79.
The Ukrainian Union of Jewish Students, which is affiliated with the
World Union of Jewish Students (WUJS), began to work in Ukraine in
the 1990's, but suspended its activities after several years.
It has since renewed operations in Ukraine under the volunteer leadership
of Victoria Godik, who is employed professionally as an instructor in engineering
management at a local university. Officially,
Ms. Godik is Chairperson of UUJS, as well as a Vice President of the European Union
of Jewish Students.
Asked to differentiate
between UUJS and Hillel, Ms. Godik responded that, although the official age range
for WUJS participants is between 18 and 35, UUJS intends to focus on post-university
age Jewish young adults because this population group needs activities that
are planned just for them. Further, she noted,
unlike Hillel, UUJS has no paid employees, elects its officers in open elections,
and participates in political activity in support of Israel.
UUJS works together with the Jewish Agency for Israel and the Ukrainian Jewish
Committee, and is open to collaborative efforts with additional Jewish organizations.
Many UUJS activities attract participants
from nearby countries, such as Moldova, Belarus, Russia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania,
Germany, France, Italy, Turkey, and Israel.
Similarly, UUJS members attend events outside Ukraine.
Most WUJS members, Ms. Godik noted, are working adults and thus have funds
for travel during weekends and vacation periods.
Among the UUJS activities are seminars on the Holocaust (sometimes in cooperation
with the Ukrainian organization Lo Tishkach),
a seminar on Jewish history in the Chernobyl area (organized with support from the
Genesis Philanthropy Group of Moscow), forums on Muslim-Jewish relations and on
general human rights issues, a three-day "winter university" at a ski
resort in the Carpathian Mountains (attracting 130 Russian-speaking Jewish young
adults from 14 countries), and a seminar in Odesa on Odesa Jewish history.
Purely social activities, such as Purim parties and Jewish speed dating,
also are very popular, said Ms. Godik. Additionally,
UUJS has held skills workshops, such as one on film editing that attracted 250 people.
Victoria Godik, age 30, is the volunteer
chairperson of UUJS. Fluent in English, she
repeatedly used the terms
young adults and young professionals in referring to the target population
of the organization. When asked how much
time she devotes to UUJS, she responded, "a lot."
Photo: the writer.
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