Bernard Lander (June 17, 1915 – February 8, 2010), founder and first president of

Touro College Touro University is a private Jewish university system headquartered in New York City, with branches throughout the United States as well as one each in Germany, Israel and Russia. It was founded by Bernard Lander in 1971 and named for Isaac ...

, was a

rabbi A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as ''semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of ...

, social scientist and educator, a leader in the Jewish community and a pioneer in Jewish and general higher education.

Biography

Lander was one of three associate directors of the Mayor's Committee on Unity, established in 1944 by former New York City Mayor

Fiorello La Guardia Fiorello Henry LaGuardia (; born Fiorello Enrico LaGuardia, ; December 11, 1882September 20, 1947) was an American attorney and politician who represented New York in the House of Representatives and served as the 99th Mayor of New York City fro ...

, which became the city's first

Commission on Human Rights A human rights commission, also known as a human relations commission, is a body set up to investigate, promote or protect human rights. The term may refer to international, national or subnational bodies set up for this purpose, such as nationa ...

. The commission prepared the first

civil rights Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and political life o ...

legislation for New York state. An ordained

Orthodox Orthodox, Orthodoxy, or Orthodoxism may refer to: Religion * Orthodoxy, adherence to accepted norms, more specifically adherence to creeds, especially within Christianity and Judaism, but also less commonly in non-Abrahamic religions like Neo-pa ...

rabbi, he held a doctorate in

sociology Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of empirical investigation an ...

from

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

. He served as a professor of sociology for over two decades at Hunter College and at

Yeshiva University Yeshiva University is a private Orthodox Jewish university with four campuses in New York City."About YU
on the Yeshiva Universi ...

, where he established the university's graduate schools of education, psychology and social work and served as dean of its

Bernard Revel Graduate School The Bernard Revel Graduate School of Jewish Studies was Yeshiva University’s first graduate school. Founded in 1937, it was named for Yeshiva University's first president, Bernard Revel. Its curriculum prepares highly trained teachers, researchers ...

. In 1971, he founded Touro College and presided over its growth into a multi-campus, international university with approximately 18,000 students at campus locations in New York, California, Florida, Nevada, Israel, Russia and Germany.Official enrollment figures
Lander College for Women jeh

Lander has served as a consultant to three

United States Presidents The president of the United States is the head of state and head of government of the United States, indirectly elected to a four-year term via the Electoral College. The officeholder leads the executive branch of the federal government and ...

and was part of the seven-member commission that established the historic "

War on Poverty The war on poverty is the unofficial name for legislation first introduced by United States President Lyndon B. Johnson during his State of the Union address on January 8, 1964. This legislation was proposed by Johnson in response to a national ...

" program in the U.S. He served as a consultant to the

White House Conference on Children and Youth The White House Conference on Children and Youth was a series of meetings hosted over 60 years by the President of the United States of America, and the first White House conference ever held. Under the leadership of Presidents Theodore Roosevelt, ...

; on an advisory council on public assistance established by Congress; and was a member of the President's Advisory Committee on Juvenile Delinquency and Youth Crime under the

Johnson Johnson is a surname of Anglo-Norman origin meaning "Son of John". It is the second most common in the United States and 154th most common in the world. As a common family name in Scotland, Johnson is occasionally a variation of ''Johnston'', a ...

and

Kennedy administration John F. Kennedy's tenure as the 35th president of the United States, began with his inauguration on January 20, 1961, and ended with his assassination on November 22, 1963. A Democrat from Massachusetts, he took office following the 1960 ...

s. For eight years he served as a senior director of a national study for the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac, known simply as Notre Dame ( ) or ND, is a private Catholic university, Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, outside the city of South Bend, Indiana, South Bend. French priest Edward Sorin fo ...

of South Bend, Indiana on the problems of youth. He is the author of a book and numerous articles in the field of sociology. He also served as a consultant to the Maryland State Commission on Juvenile Delinquency. Lander has been honored by the Council of New York State College Presidents for his lifetime contributions to higher education. A former Rabbi of Beth Jacob Congregation of

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

and former president of the Queens Jewish Center in Forest Hills, Queens (NY), Lander was also an Honorary Vice President of the

Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America The Orthodox Union (abbreviated OU) is one of the largest Orthodox Jewish organizations in the United States. Founded in 1898, the OU supports a network of synagogues, youth programs, Jewish and Religious Zionist advocacy programs, programs for ...

. Lander was the recipient of the landmark ruling by

Rabbi Moshe Feinstein Moshe Feinstein ( he, משה פײַנשטיין; Lithuanian pronunciation: ''Moshe Faynshteyn''; en, Moses Feinstein; March 3, 1895 – March 23, 1986) was an American Orthodox rabbi, scholar, and ''posek'' (authority on ''halakha''—J ...

concerning the Orthodox position on Christian-Jewish dialogue in a 1967 letter published in

Igros Moshe ''Igros Moshe'' ( he, אגרות משה, , Epistles of Moses; Israeli/Sephardic pronunciation: ''Igrot Moshe'') is a nine-volume series of ''halakhic'' responsa by Rabbi Moshe Feinstein. The first seven volumes were published during Rabbi Feinste ...

. His son, Rabbi Doniel Lander, is the rosh yeshiva of Yeshivas Ohr HaChaim in

Queens Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...

, New York. He died on February 8, 2010.

Bibliography

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lander, Bernard 1915 births 2010 deaths Heads of universities and colleges in the United States American Orthodox rabbis Columbia University alumni Touro College people University of Notre Dame faculty 20th-century American rabbis 21st-century American Jews University and college founders

Biography

See also

Bibliography

References