Department of Near Eastern and Judaic Studies

Ellen Smith

Director of the Hornstein Jewish Professional Leadership Program and Associate Professor in Hornstein

Degrees

• Boston University, MA
• Oberlin College, BA

Profile

Ellen Smith is Director of the Hornstein Jewish Professional Leadership Program at Brandeis University, Associate Professor in Hornstein, and an affiliate faculty member in the Department of Near Eastern and Judaic Studies. She also co-directs advanced training programs at Brandeis for Jewish professionals and organizations. At Brandeis, she has developed a series of new courses in visual and material culture, and museum studies; most recently Art, Artifacts, and History: The Material Culture of Modern Jews; and Introduction to Jewish Museum Studies.

Selected Publications

Trained as both an academic historian and a museum curator, Ellen has published more than three dozen books, articles, and catalogs including The Jews of Boston, co-edited with Jonathan D. Sarna. Among her recent work are publications and exhibitions including The Jews of Rhode Island, Seattle Jewish Women (Museum of History and Industry, Seattle); Jewish New Year Postcards; American Yiddish Theater (Museum of Jewish Heritage, New York City); Colonial American Jewish Portraits (Jewish Museum, New York City); historic immigrant synagogues; and three exhibitions on the Jews of Boston.