Brandeis Magazine

Brandeis is collaborating with the Robert K. Kraft family and the Foundation to Combat Antisemitism on a new initiative to fight the rising tide of Jewish hate nationwide.

President Ron Liebowitz, who announced the partnership in March, said the initiative aims to give students, higher-education leaders, and Jewish communal professionals the knowledge, resources, and tools to help diverse communities recognize and stand up to antisemitism and hate.

“I’m grateful that an organization as committed to fighting antisemitism as the Kraft Group’s FCAS is joining us in this critical work,” said Liebowitz.

Last year, antisemitic incidents in the U.S. reached an all-time high, according to the Anti-Defamation League, which began tabulating reports of assault, vandalism, and harassment against the Jewish community in 1979. Antisemitic incidents rose 36% from 2021 to 2022; on college campuses, they rose 41%.

“Through our Foundation to Combat Antisemitism, we are working to find innovative ways to educate and empower Jews and non-Jews to stand up to Jewish hate,” said Robert Kraft, founder, chairman, and CEO of the Kraft Group, in his announcement of the partnership. “Brandeis is the right partner for this important work, as its founding values are based on a commitment to create a better world.”

The collaboration will focus on three areas:

• FCAS will provide paid semester-long and yearlong fellowships to Brandeis undergraduates, graduate students, and recent alumni through the university’s Samuels Center for Community Partnerships and Civic Transformation (COMPACT). Working at FCAS, fellows will develop their research and communications skills, and build community partnerships.
• The effort will convene higher-education and K-12 leaders to give them the expertise and support they need to address antisemitism on their campuses.
• And it will offer a low-residency master’s program and graduate certificate program in antisemitism training, housed within Brandeis’ Hornstein Jewish Professional Leadership Program.

Liebowitz told BrandeisNOW the university’s highest priority is to ensure an open learning environment. “Brandeis was founded by the American Jewish community nearly 75 years ago, in response to restrictive quotas placed on Jews in higher education,” he said. “It has always been open to students of all backgrounds and committed to the free exchange of ideas. For these reasons, the university has both an obligation and role to play in educating young people about the persistence of antisemitism, and its impact on Jews and non-Jews alike.”