Maurice & Marilyn Cohen
Center for Modern Jewish Studies

This report represents the 12th year of our on-going evaluation of the Summer Institute for Israel Studies (a project of the Schusterman Center for Israel Studies). The Institute seeks to make the study of Israel an ongoing component of the curriculum of higher education. Researchers observed sessions during the two-week program held at Brandeis University, spoke informally with Fellows, and conducted a survey with the 2004-15 cohorts.

Millennial Children of Intermarriage: Religious Upbringing, Identification, and Behavior Among Children of Jewish and Non-Jewish Parents
Contemporary Jewry
Theodore Sasson, Janet Krasner Aronson, Fern Chertok, Charles Kadushin, Leonard Saxe
March 2017

CMJS authors look at data for three generations of children of intermarriage and find that children of intermarriage are now more likely to be raised Jewish and receive Jewish education, more likely to identify as Jewish in adulthood, and more likely to practice aspects of Judaism.

2015 Greater Boston Jewish Community Study
November 2016

The 2015 Greater Boston Jewish Community Study provides an up-to-date description of the size and character of Boston-area Jewry. Included in the study are demographic findings, information on the religious background and geographic profile of Greater Boston’s Jewish population as well as descriptions of participation in Jewish life and volunteer activities. 

Under the Chuppah: Rabbinic Officiation and Intermarriage
October 2016

This report explores several essential questions about the relationship between Jewish clergy officiation and intermarried couples' trajectories of Jewish engagement. The analyses explore differences between three groups of couples: inmarried couples, intermarried couples who had a sole Jewish officiant (i.e., no non-Jewish co-officiant), and intermarried couples who married under other auspices.

Hotspots of Antisemitism and Anti-Israel Sentiment on US Campuses
October 2016

This report is based on findings from a 2016 survey of Jewish undergraduates at 50 US campuses. Identifying campuses where antisemitism and anti-Israel sentiment are especially acute, the study also looks at the particular manifestations of hostility at different campuses and the ways in which these climates influence the lives of Jewish students.

Diversity, Pressure, and Divisions on the University of Pennsylvania Campus
October 2016

This report is the second in a series of reports of select campuses and focuses on the University of Pennsylvania. Based on a survey of both Jewish and non-Jewish students, the study explores the intersection of racial, ethnic, and religious identities, gender, and sexual orientation, intergroup interactions, experiences of discrimination, and feelings of safety and belonging on campus in the context of the larger campus climate.

New US Jewish Population Estimates
Updated September 2016

Since 2005, SSRI researchers have been collecting data from hundreds of nationally representative surveys in order to provide one of the most comprehensive, independent sources of data on the Jewish community in the United States. The latest release from the American Jewish Population Project provides new population estimates for the continental United States, its states, metropolitan areas, and counties and new data on the political identification and political views of Jewish adults.

Israel Face to Face: Evaluation of the Israel Fellows Program
September 2016

This study is an evaluation of the Israel Fellows Program, a program designed to promote engagement with Israel through the placement of young adult Fellows on college campuses. Piloted on six college campuses in 2003, IFP has grown to 75 Fellows serving almost 100 campuses throughout North America. 

All Together Separate: Race, Ethnicity, and Religion on the Brandeis Campus
May 2016

This study is part of a program of research focusing on the identities of Jewish students and their experiences of anti-Israel hostility on campuses. Using Brandeis University as a case study, this study takes a broad view and explores a wide range of issues at the intersections of undergraduates’ racial, ethnic, and religious identities. 

2015 Nashville and Middle Tennessee Jewish Community Study
May 2016

This community study documents a slowly but steadily growing community of Jews. At its core, the Jewish community of Nashville and Middle Tennessee is comprised of a small, tight-knit group of highly involved individuals who participate in many aspects of Jewish life.

Millennial Children of Intermarriage: Touchpoints and Trajectories of Jewish Engagement 
October 2015

This study is the first comprehensive assessment to examine the religious upbringing, college experiences, and current attitudes and practices of millennial children of intermarriage, a cohort that currently comprises nearly half of the young adult Jewish population.

The Israel Literacy Measurement Project: 2015 Report
October 2015

The Israel Literacy Measurement Project is an attempt to create a valid and reliable measure of knowledge of Israel. Drawing on definitions of literacy in other social science disciplines and in consultation with subject experts, the research team developed a test bank that can be used with college-aged young adults to assess the extent and content of their Israel-related knowledge. 

The Summer Institute for Israel Studies: 2015
October 2015

The Brandeis University Summer Institute for Israel Studies (SIIS) prepares university faculty members to teach about Israel within the frameworks of their own disciplines.  To date, the Institute has educated almost 250 college and university faculty members to teach about Israel. In the 11th year of its on-going evaluation of SIIS, CMJS observed sessions during the program, spoke informally with fellows, and conducted a survey with the 2004-14 cohorts regarding the impact of the program on teaching, scholarship, and related activities.

Israel Studies Directory: 2013-14 Report Update
September 2015

To help inform educational opportunities about Israel, CMJS continues to track the development of Israel studies at 316 colleges and universities in the United States. Among other findings, the report documents a13% increase in Israel-focused courses and a 22% increase in Israel-related courses between the years 2008-09 and 2013-14.

Antisemitism on the college campus: Perceptions and realities 
July 2015

In the wake of the Israel-Hamas war in summer 2014, US and Canadian college campuses were the settings for many anti-Israel activities, including the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) campaign. This study attempts to understand the extent of hostility toward Israel and antisemitism on North American campuses and  assess the relationship between these trends and Jewish students’ support for and connection to Israel.

Discovering Israel at War: The Impact of Taglit-Birthright Israel in Summer 2014
February 2015

Nearly 25,000 North American young Jews participated in Taglit-Birthright Israel, just prior and during the 2014 war with Hamas in Gaza. The study assesses participants’ experiences and compares their views of Israel to similar others who applied, but did not participate. As previous studies have found, Taglit has powerful effects on participants.

The 2014 Greater Seattle Jewish Community Study
January 2015

The study documents the recent, rapid growth of the Seattle Jewish community and engagement of its members. Seattle is distinguished by having a broad set of communal institutions that engage the population in Jewish life, while also being home to a large number of secular and non-religious Jews. 

The Summer Institute for Israel Studies: The First Decade and Looking Ahead
December 2014

Summer 2014 marked the beginning of the second decade of the Summer Institute for Israel Studies (SIIS) that prepares faculty members from around the world to design and teach courses about Israel. The report documents the impact of the program on participants and their teaching about Israel. 

Pew’s portrait of American Jewry: A reassessment of the assimilation narrative
October 2014
In A. Dashefsky & I. Sheskin (Eds.), American Jewish Year Book 2014 (Vol. 114, pp. 71-81). New York: Springer International Publishing.
Leonard Saxe, Theodore Sasson, Janet Krasner Aronson

The findings of the 2013 Pew Center report, A Portrait of Jewish Americans, have been characterized as documenting the decline of American Jewry. But the study actually shows substantial growth in the size of the Jewish population and considerable stability in engagement with Jewish life. This chapter reassesses our understanding of American Jews.

JEWISH FUTURES PROJECT. The Impact of Taglit-Birthright Israel: Marriage and Family
September 2014

The fourth wave of the Jewish Futures Project, a longitudinal study of Jewish young adults, includes an expanded number of panelists with families. This change in the panel composition allows for additional new analyses including patterns related to marriage and child rearing, and an examination of applicant subgroups such as children of intermarried parents.

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