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Hebrew Union College to end 4 graduate programs, including 2 in Cincinnati
(JTA) – When Reform Judaism’s leading educational institution adopted a controversial plan last year to discontinue rabbinical seminary studies at its flagship Cincinnati campus, leaders were insistent that other graduate programs would still be on offer there.
That no longer appears to be the case, as Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion’s president has announced that the school will shutter all of the full-time degree programs based in Cincinnati.
In a letter to the school community sent Tuesday, HUC-JIR President Andrew Rehfeld announced that the four-campus school would discontinue four programs: the doctoral and master’s degree programs in Jewish studies that are based in Cincinnati, as well as a doctoral program in interfaith ministry in New York and a master’s program in educational leadership in Los Angeles.
Rehfeld cited “financial constraints” and enrollment among the reasons for discontinuing the programs.
HUC-JIR’s rabbinical and cantorial programs remain intact, although Rehfeld said the schools would each soon adopt a new curriculum and a “new hybrid pathway that will help us attract and retain highly qualified and dedicated individuals and be more responsive to the diverse needs of our students.” Rehfeld had previously indicated that HUC-JIR would make itself more hospitable to students who cannot or do not want to commit to a five-year course of study in New York or Los Angeles.
Rehfeld said the educational leadership master’s degree program would admit its final class in 2024 and cease operations by 2026, while the school would be “supporting all current students in these programs through the completion of their degrees.” A part-time, non-residential doctor of Hebrew letters course for ordained rabbis that has been based in Cincinnati is not being discontinued. A master’s degree program for Jewish day school educators and an array of certificate programs for teachers and nonprofit professionals who wish to enhance their training also remain.
“We are committed to supporting both our current students in completing their programs and our accomplished alumni — their dedication to HUC-JIR and to advancing Jewish learning is an inspiration to all of us,” Rehfeld wrote in his email. He also said the institution would hire an executive director to oversee the remaining elements of the Cincinnati campus — the American Jewish Archives, a library and a museum — which the school collectively dubs its “Research Center.”
A spokesperson for HUC-JIR did not immediately return a Jewish Telegraphic Agency request for comment. But the board’s decision last year to stop training rabbis at HUC’s 148-year-old flagship Cincinnati campus, in favor of investments in its New York and Los Angeles outposts, opened up fault lines in the Reform community and some political opposition from Ohio officials. Rehfeld’s own faculty openly rebelled against him, as did a large network of HUC alumni, many of whom said the Reform movement was abandoning the middle of the country and its own history with its plan.
Proponents of the plan argued at the time that HUC’s declining enrollment and the Reform movement’s overall challenges with financing its programs necessitated a changes. The campus’s graduate programs had limited enrollment as well, with Rehfeld telling JTA last year that only 13 students were enrolled there at the time. Rehfeld had promised the board would be “doing an evaluation of our graduate program” in its first year of phasing out the rabbinical program.
“I just think already much of the education is being done outside of Cincinnati,” he said at the time.
A page on HUC’s website meant to advertise its Cincinnati campus was sparsely populated as of Tuesday.
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Washington Warns UK, France Against Recognizing Palestinian Statehood
Britain’s Foreign Secretary David Lammy leaves Downing Street, following the results of the election, in London, Britain, July 5, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Toby Melville
i24 News – The United States has warned the UK and France not to unilaterally recognize a Palestinian state at a UN conference scheduled for June 17 in New York, the Middle East Eye reported Tuesday.
France and Saudi Arabia will co-host this conference on the two-state solution, with Paris reportedly preparing to unilaterally recognize Palestine. France is also pressuring London to follow this path, according to sources from the British Foreign Office.
French media reports indicate that French authorities believe they have the agreement of the British government. Meanwhile, Arab states are encouraging this move, measuring the success of the conference by the recognitions obtained.
This initiative deeply divides Western allies. If France and the UK were to carry out this recognition, they would become the first G7 nations to take this step, causing a “political earthquake” according to observers, given their historical ties with Israel. The Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer threatened last week to annex parts of the West Bank if this recognition took place, according to a report in the Israeli newspaper Haaretz.
In the United Kingdom, Foreign Secretary David Lammy publicly opposes unilateral recognition, stating that London would only recognize a Palestinian state when we know that it is going to happen and that it is in view.
However, pressure is mounting within the Labour Party. MP Uma Kumaran, member of the Foreign Affairs Committee, said that the government was elected on a platform that promised to recognize Palestine as a step towards a just and lasting peace. Chris Doyle, director of the Council for Arab-British Understanding, believes that there is no legitimate reason for the United States to interfere in a sovereign decision of recognition, while highlighting the unpredictability of US President Donald Trump on this issue.
The post Washington Warns UK, France Against Recognizing Palestinian Statehood first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Police, Shin Bet Thwart Suspected Iranian Attempt Perpetrate Terror Attack
A small number of Jewish worshipers pray during the priestly blessing, a traditional prayer which usually attracts thousands of worshipers at the Western Wall on the holiday of Passover during 2020, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Jerusalem’s Old City, April 12, 2020. Photo: Reuters / Ronen Zvulun.
i24 News – The Shin Bet security agency and Israel Police thwarted another Iranian attempt to recruit Israelis, according to a statement on Tuesday, arresting a resident of East Jerusalem for allegedly carrying out missions for the Islamic Republic.
Iranian agents recruited the suspect, who in turn recruited members of his family. He is a resident of the Isawiya neighborhood in his 30s, and is accused of maintaining contact with a hostile foreign entity to harm the state by carrying out a terrorist attack against Jews.
The suspect had already begun perpetrating acts of sabotage and espionage, including collecting intelligence about areas in Jerusalem, including the Western Wall and Mahane Yehuda Market. He also hung signs, burned Israeli army uniforms, and more in exchange for payment totaling thousands of shekels.
He was also charged with planning a terror attack in central Israel, including setting fire to a forest, and was told to transfer weapons to terrorist elements in the West Bank.
The suspect’s sought the help of family members, including his mother. A search at his home revealed sums of cash, a spray can used in some of his activities, airsoft guns, suspected illegal drugs, and more.
His indictment is expected to be filed by the Jerusalem District Attorney’s Office.
The statement said that the case is yet another example of Iranian efforts to recruit Israelis. “We will continue to coordinate efforts to thwart terrorism and terrorist elements, including those operating outside Israel, while attempting to mobilize local elements in order to protect the citizens of the State of Israel,” the Shin Bet and Police said.
The post Police, Shin Bet Thwart Suspected Iranian Attempt Perpetrate Terror Attack first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Pro-Russian, Anti-Israeli Hackers Pose Biggest Cybercrime Threats in Germany
German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt holds a chart showing the development of antisemitic crime, during a press conference on Figures for Politically Motivated Crime in the Country, in Berlin, Germany, May 20, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Lisi Niesner
Cybercrime in Germany rose to a record level last year, driven by hacker attacks from pro-Russian and anti-Israeli groups, the BKA Federal Crime Office reported on Tuesday as the government said it would boost countermeasures to combat it.
“Cybercrime is an increasing threat to our security,” said Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt. “It is getting more aggressive but our counter-strategies are also becoming more professional,” he said.
Some 131,391 cases of cybercrime took place in Germany last year and a further 201,877 cases were committed from abroad or an unknown location, a BKA report said.
The actors behind the hacker attacks on German targets were primarily either pro-Russian or anti-Israeli, said the BKA, adding targets were mostly public and federal institutions.
Ransomware, when criminals copy and encrypt data, is one of the main threats, said the BKA, with 950 companies and institutes reporting cases in 2024.
German digital association Bitkom said damage caused by cyberattacks here totaled 178.6 billion euros ($203.87 billion) last year, some 30.4 billion euros more than in the previous year.
Dobrindt said the government planned to extend the legal capabilities authorities could use to combat cybercrime and set higher security standards for companies.
The post Pro-Russian, Anti-Israeli Hackers Pose Biggest Cybercrime Threats in Germany first appeared on Algemeiner.com.