Brandeis University President's Initiative on Antisemitism

Please join us for these Fall 2025 virtual seminars open to higher education leaders and administrators currently working in departments related to student and academic affairs, DEI and legal affairs, communications, development, president, provost, and deans' offices, etc. Sessions are held "meeting-style" with an opportunity to ask questions toward the end.
Registration for each session required and closes 2 hours before start time. Free of charge.

Thursday, October 16, 2025, 12-1 PM ET

An exploration of the Trump Administration’s approach to confronting campus antisemitism as well as recent lawsuits in this area.

Presented by Hon. Kenneth L. Marcus, an internationally recognized expert in civil and human rights, as well as a leader in the fight against antisemitism on and off university campuses. He is the Founder, Chairman, and CEO of The Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law, the leading civil rights legal organization fighting antisemitism. The New York Times has called him “The Man Who Helped Redefine Campus Anti-Semitism.” He has been described, in that paper, as “the single most effective and respected force” to combat antisemitism.

During his public service career, Marcus served as Assistant U.S. Secretary of Education for Civil Rights; Staff Director at the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights; and General Deputy Assistant U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity. 

In academia, he serves as Professorial Lecturer in Law at George Washington University. He formerly held the Lillie and Nathan Ackerman Chair in Equality and Justice in America at the City University of New York’s Bernard M. Baruch College, served as Visiting Research Professor of Political Science at Yeshiva University, and was a Board of Visitors member at George Mason University and Distinguished Senior Fellow at that university’s law school. He is a member of the editorial board of the Journal of Contemporary Antisemitism and previously served as Associate Editor of the Journal for the Study of Anti-Semitism.

Marcus is also author of "The Definition of Anti-Semitism" (Oxford University Press) and "Jewish Identity and Civil Rights in America" (Cambridge University Press). He has published widely in academic journals as well as in more popular venues such as The Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Newsweek, USA Today, and Politico. He is a graduate of Williams College and the University of California at Berkeley School of Law.

Earlier in his career, he was a litigation partner in two major law firms, where he conducted complex commercial and constitutional litigation. He currently chairs the Executive Committee of the Federalist Society for Law & Public Policy Civil Rights Practice Group.

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Monday, November 10, 2025, 12-1 PM ET

Antisemitism—and the traumatic invalidation that often accompanies it— has impacted students and staff across educational institutions, creating heightened stress, fear, and division. This session offers a trauma-informed dialogue framework specifically for administrators and support staff, designed to surface and validate the experiences of those affected by antisemitic bias, repair relational ruptures, and cultivate a shared commitment to psychological safety. Participants will learn how to recognize and interrupt patterns of invalidation, facilitate conversations that honor the pain of targeted individuals, and co-create norms that prevent future harm. The session will also explore how to validate students’ experiences while holding them accountable for academic responsibilities, fostering a balanced approach to support and structure. The session will also address how antisemitism—if unacknowledged—can contribute to radicalization, and how trauma-aware responses can prevent further polarization, helping campuses remain inclusive, safe, and grounded in shared values.

Presented by Dr. Miri Bar-Halpern, Director of Trauma Training and Services at Parents for Peace and a Lecturer in Psychology at Harvard Medical School, where she supervises psychology interns and psychiatry residents. With two decades of experience across clinical, academic, tech startup, and policy settings, she has developed global training programs and public health initiatives focused on resilience, healing, and recovery—especially in the face of extremism, identity-based violence, and chronic stress.

Dr. Bar-Halpern is a nationally recognized trauma expert and a leading researcher on traumatic invalidation—a phenomenon she explores in both clinical practice and academic work. She has authored treatment manuals, led therapy groups, and presented widely on trauma, radicalization, and the psychological toll of societal exclusion. Her publications include peer-reviewed chapters and articles on trauma and emotion regulation, as well as the children’s book Becoming a Superhero: A Book for Children Who Have Been Exposed to Trauma. She also advises digital health companies and develops trauma-informed trainings that integrate strategies to recognize and repair traumatic invalidation across clinical, educational, and organizational settings.

Since the October 7 Hamas attack and the rise in antisemitism and extremism, Dr. Bar-Halpern has led coordinated mental health efforts to support affected individuals and communities—organizing consultations, therapy groups, campus outreach, and educational webinars. She regularly speaks on the intersection of antisemitism, trauma, and radicalization, offering a trauma-informed lens on complex sociopolitical dynamics.

She provides supervision and consultation on burnout, vicarious trauma, post-traumatic growth, and culturally responsive, trauma-informed care. Dr. Bar-Halpern is also the co-host of the podcast Our Stories Matter, produced by the Trauma Informed Learning Alliance.

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Thursday, December 4, 2025, 12-1 PM ET

Trump is waging war against higher education. While most Americans don’t support the attack, they share his distrust. This lack of faith in our universities is attributed to campus antisemitism and political lopsidedness among faculty, especially when it comes to teaching contentious issues, including the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Despite these frequent and long-standing allegations of bias, however, remarkably little hard evidence has ever been adduced to prove them. We recently discovered just that evidence when we analyzed a database of 27 million college syllabi. In this short talk, we will review our findings and address how college administrators might encourage more responsible and broadminded curriculums, build a university culture of robust liberal debate, and begin winning back public trust.

Presented by Professors Yuval Avnur (Scripps College, Claremont) and Stephanie Muravchik (Claremont McKenna College)

Yuval Avnur is Professor of Philosophy at Scripps College, Claremont. He is author of numerous works on skepticism, contemporary issues concerning the spread of information, the history of philosophy (especially David Hume and Blaise Pascal), and philosophy of religion. Originally from Israel, Avnur moved to the US at age 7, and now lives in Claremont with his wife (an illustrator) and two kids.

Stephanie Muravchik teaches in the Government Department at Claremont McKenna College. She is the author of "American Protestantism in an Age of Psychology" (Cambridge, 2011) and the co-author, with Jon A. Shields, of "Trump’s Democrats" (Brookings, 2020) and "The Republican Civil War: What Liz Cheney’s Wyoming Tells Us About a Divided American Right" (forthcoming, Oxford). She is also an associate fellow of the Institute for Advanced Studies in Culture at the University of Virginia.

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Please join us for this Fall 2025 virtual seminar open to school educators and educational leaders. Sessions are held "meeting-style" with an opportunity to ask questions toward the end.

Registration for each session required and closes 2 hours before start time. Free of charge.

Monday, November 10, 2025, 4-5 PM ET

In the wake of rising antisemitism and widespread communal trauma, Jewish families are experiencing profound grief, fear, and invalidation. This hands-on workshop offers a supportive and empowering space for community members to come together, learn, and heal.

Through the lens of resilience-centered approach, participants will explore how antisemitism and traumatic invalidation affect individuals and families, and how we can respond effectively. The session will include interactive tools for supporting individuals and communities, guidance for parents navigating school-based challenges, and strategies for bridging divides across communities through safe activism and dialogue.

Whether you are personally affected or seeking to stand in allyship, this gathering will offer a path toward resilience, connection, and collective action.

Presented by Dr. Miri Bar-Halpern, Director of Trauma Training and Services at Parents for Peace and a Lecturer in Psychology at Harvard Medical School, where she supervises psychology interns and psychiatry residents. With two decades of experience across clinical, academic, tech startup, and policy settings, she has developed global training programs and public health initiatives focused on resilience, healing, and recovery—especially in the face of extremism, identity-based violence, and chronic stress.

Dr. Bar-Halpern is a nationally recognized trauma expert and a leading researcher on traumatic invalidation—a phenomenon she explores in both clinical practice and academic work. She has authored treatment manuals, led therapy groups, and presented widely on trauma, radicalization, and the psychological toll of societal exclusion. Her publications include peer-reviewed chapters and articles on trauma and emotion regulation, as well as the children’s book Becoming a Superhero: A Book for Children Who Have Been Exposed to Trauma. She also advises digital health companies and develops trauma-informed trainings that integrate strategies to recognize and repair traumatic invalidation across clinical, educational, and organizational settings.

Since the October 7 Hamas attack and the rise in antisemitism and extremism, Dr. Bar-Halpern has led coordinated mental health efforts to support affected individuals and communities—organizing consultations, therapy groups, campus outreach, and educational webinars. She regularly speaks on the intersection of antisemitism, trauma, and radicalization, offering a trauma-informed lens on complex sociopolitical dynamics.

She provides supervision and consultation on burnout, vicarious trauma, post-traumatic growth, and culturally responsive, trauma-informed care. Dr. Bar-Halpern is also the co-host of the podcast Our Stories Matter, produced by the Trauma Informed Learning Alliance.

Register Now

October 23, 2025

October 26, 2025

November 4, 2025