Stern College for Women - Kochaviah Yearbook (New York, NY)

Page 22 text:

STERN COLLEGE FOR WOMEN r.3 Dear Graduate . November I . li S6 Ovet the yean Stern College tor Women has boon setting its sights ever higher and us reach ever larthcr We can all nghtlv be proud that our Jewish Studies program, the foundation ol our educational mission, has 3n intellectual vigor that engages the searching mind and soul, that our general studies curriculum truly focuses on the central and pivotal concerns ol Western Civilization, that our career tracks provide the incisive skills needed tor achievement in the professions. However to grow from this position of strength toward greater goals requires careful thought, planning and above all the setting ot priorities. We truly hope we can count on you. our graduates, to help with this task. Similarlv I feel |ustU proud ot vour personal accomplishments. As a group you are well educated and articulate. More importantly you have internalized the values of our heritage and have demonstrated in word and deed your respect for learning and your deep concern for vour fellow man. However what was relatively easy to achieve in the confines ot our College mav not be so easily maintained in a changing world. If I were to offer mv advice to vou at this critical time it would be to set your priorities carelullv Choose goals worth attaining. Fight battles worth winning. Spend your precious time on meaningful activities and with meaningful people. Improve yourself and improve the world. This is a formidable task, but then you are a talented group of On behalf of the faculty and staff I wish you much success. May you go from strength to strength in all your undertakings. Sincerely, £J £ -- ; ■■ ' ..-■. -.. -. ■ ' .. . ■ ■ •. iO Dear Graduates. As Yeshiva University, after one hundred years of existence, continues to progress from strength to strength. Stern College women are proclaiming a desire for unparalleled standards of academic excellence. Although much praise has been forthcoming as those goals are being realized, much criticism has been levelled, almost arbitrarily, against administrators, faculty and fellow students for tolerating anything less than excellence. Such criticism often merely veils an unwillingness on the part of an individual to extend herself and 10 invest the energies required to attain excellence. To shift the blame is to deny one ' s responsibility. During the past four years you have grown and matured. Vou have had the opportunity to be challenged — to investigate issues, research theories and to probe inner truths stripped of their facades. In an environment of Torah education and practice you have progressed in your observance of mitzvot. n- ■ • l 3f iU 9y Ipj (f The mitzvot were given to purify Israel. Through your heightened levels of observance vou have improved your qualities, strengthened your character and developed greater self control. It is our hope that the keen awareness and self- discipline vou have acquired will ensure that you continually strive toward greater heights, for introspection and real growth result in the internal development of standards Standards that are met and maintained, not because they are imposed from without, but because they emanate from Within May you set lor yourselves high tand.irds of academic achievement, community responsibility, personal behavior and Integrity and. above all. have the courage and determination to pursue them Ah. but a man ' s reach should exceed his grasp, or ■ he iven i, -I • Sim erely. hfw

Page 21 text:

FACULTY

Page 23 text:

STERN COLLEGE FOR WOMEN 245 LEXINGTON AVENUE NEW YORK, NY 10016-4699 (2 12)340-7700 v,,. UNIViBSlT V Dear Graduates, It is with a deep sense of pride and great pleasure that I congratulate you upon your graduation from Stern College for Women. You have experienced first-hand a curriculum of Torah u-Mada which has hopefully impacted upon your minds and upon your lives. More important than the intellectual growth that you have achieved here is the continued development that I trust you will experience in the years ahead. The Jewish Studies faculty has taught you how to study Jewish texts and how these texts are relevant and meaningful to you as Jewish women. It is up to you to take these postulates and methodologies and use them as productively as you can. Set aside time to study each day, each week as you pursue your chosen professions and personal goals. Share your knowledge with others. Above all. bear in mind the Mishnaic dictum: Ehad ha-marbeh ve-ehad ha-mam ' it u-bilvad she-yekhavein libbo la- shamayim. Sincerely yours, Rabbi Ephraim Kanarfogel Chairman, Department of Jewish Studies Y E S H I V STERN COLLEGE FOR WOMEN 245 LEXINGTON AVENUE NEW YORK, NY 10016-4699 1212)340-7700 Dear Graduates We find in the Torah a Posuk which describes our forefather Avrohom Avinu. It states (Gen. 24:l) And Avrohom grew old and came into days and G-d blessed him with everything. The question that is posed is, how is one blessed with everything in this world? To answer this question the Yalkut Shimoni (Gen. I03) quotes a Posuk from Proverbs (31:25) Strength and dignity are her clothing and she laugheth at the time to come . The Yalkut interprets the verse and her clothing as zeh levusho shel Torah as referring to the mantle of learning, the garments of knowledge. What the Yalkut is teaching us is that what kept Avrohom Avinu young, what enabled him to feel blessing with everything in creation was his unbelievable dedication to learning Torah. It was his thirst for the word of G-d that enabled him to continuously grow spiritually. It was this type of constructive activity that allowed him to fully appreciate both G-d and man ' s respective roles in creation and the maintenance of the world to the point that everything in this world had meaning and significance for him and ultimate blessing. It is this unique Abrahamic tradition that has spearheaded Yeshiva University ' s first hundred years of unbelievable achievement and it is this tradition that will allow it to flourish in the future as well. As graduates of Stern College you have been handed on a silver platter this legacy of Avrohom Avinu. You have been taught by great Torah Scholars both how to analyze the intricacies of our Torah as well as how to apply them to your daily life in our society. It is my hope and fervent prayer that you will utilize this knowledge in a constructive and challenging fashion on both a personal and communal level so that you will likewise derive blessing from everything in creation. Wishing you much Mazel. Brocha, and success in all your future endeavors, I remain. Respectfully yours. m Rabbi Tzvi Flaum