Welcome to the Brandeis University National Women's Committee.

Now in its 60th year, Brandeis University has become well established, renowned for its academic excellence and celebrated for its ideals of social justice. But when Brandeis first opened its library doors in the fall of 1948, it was not the best of times for this unique university...yet. Brandeis's book collection was meager, only 2,000 volumes, and was housed in, of all places, a converted horse stable! This was Brandeis's infancy, though, and the nation's only Jewish-sponsored, non-sectarian University had an incredible challenge ahead.

It would be an extraordinary task to create a library that could barely compete, let alone compete well, with the "old ivies" in New England. Brandeis was determined to be first rate. Remarkably, eight women would answer this challenge. Their loyalty to this unproven university came from a different breed of faith: both to the Jewish community at large, and to education itself. They called themselves the National Women's Committee, and what they would work to achieve was no less than amazing.

Sixty years later, the Brandeis University National Women's Committee is a thriving, vital part of both Brandeis and its library fundraising efforts. We are now one of the largest, most successful "friends of a library" organizations in the world. With over 39,000 members in 76 chapters across the country, the National Women's Committee has raised over $113 million for Brandeis University and its libraries. A remarkable feat!