The Sacks-Herenstein Center for Values and Leadership is proud to welcome the Sacks Scholars Graduate Fellows in Ethics and Entrepreneurship, 2022-2023. The Fellowship honors the memory of Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, the influential ethicist, faith leader, and former Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the British Commonwealth.

In this inaugural interdisciplinary cohort coordinated by Dr. Shira Weiss and Dr. Erica Brown, the first initiative in YU’s history to bring together students from Yeshiva University’s ten graduate programs, candidates were selected to create and implement a project of social value that impacts their field as well as publish an essay on an ethical topic that contributes to the scholarship of their discipline.

We congratulate the following Sacks Scholars. Read about each person in more detail on the scholars’ webpage.

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Rebecca Kreiser, a third-year student at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, will research and assess how current legislation will impact drug costs and identify next steps Medicare can take to make drug costs more affordable for its beneficiaries and competitive with private market prices.

 

 

 

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Hillel Broder, who is pursuing an M.A. in Jewish Philosophy at the Bernard Revel Graduate School of Jewish Studies, will develop a curriculum and text study guide to fuse educational research and best practices with sophisticated textual study to enhance students’ spiritual development.

 

 

 

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Talya Gordon is a doctoral candidate at the Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology.  She will create and implement a trauma-focused psychoeducational intervention to empower homeless individuals to process their trauma before relocating into homes.

 

 

 

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Jordan Soffer, who is pursuing an Ed.D. in Educational Leadership at the Azrieli Graduate School of Jewish Education and Administration, will develop online resources of best practices of the customer service industry and tools for implementation to enhance Jewish day schools’ ability to serve stakeholders.

 

 

 

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Daniela Weiss-Bronstein is a Ph.D. candidate at Wurzweiler School of Social Work, where she completed her MSW. Daniela will develop supplemental training for clergy and premarital counselors working with couples with trauma histories as well as online resources for couples to access.

 

 

 

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Daniel Gottesman is a fourth-year student at the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary (RIETS) and a master’s student in Azrieli Graduate School. In a partnership between RIETS and Wurzweiler, Daniel will assess rabbinical students’ needs when working with trauma victims and collaborate with Daniela Weiss-Bronstein to train Rabbis/pastoral counselors to support individuals/couples with trauma histories.

 

 

 

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Andrea Maxi, a second-year doctoral student at Wurzweiler, will facilitate psychoeducation groups of immigrant Latino mothers to address post-partum needs, promote medical and mental health awareness, and increase cross-cultural practices, a new program for Wurzweiler’s Care Café.

 

 

 

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Paul Kutner is pursuing his master’s degree in Holocaust and Genocide Studies at the Emil A. and Jenny Fish Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies. Paul will coordinate workshops for teachers, museum educators, parent groups and professional organizations to teach how to mitigate Holocaust distortion effectively and propose improvements in Holocaust education.

 

 

 

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Neti Linzer is pursuing a master’s degree at the Graduate Program for Advanced Talmudic Studies for Women as well as an M.A. in Jewish Philosophy at the Bernard Revel Graduate School. Neti will create an intellectual forum and reader for values-driven YU undergraduate students to engage in text-based discussions with peers and faculty centered around the integration of Jewish and philosophical sources on topics of applied ethics.

 

 

 

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Alvin McLaughlin, a Ph.D. candidate who earned his MSW from Wurzweiler, will facilitate psychoeducational workshops to advance mental health as a mechanism for improved emotional development of African American youth and their parents, extending the reach of Wurzweiler’s Care Café.

 

 

 

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Jillian Rossi is a master’s student in Speech-Language Pathology in the Katz School of Health and Science. She will advocate and provide accessibility to free speech and language services for children who no longer qualify for early intervention due to a national change in developmental speech milestones.

 

 

 

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Marc Eichenbaum is a third-year doctoral student in Ferkauf’s School-Clinical Psy.D. program. Marc will develop a resource book for Judaic studies teachers/students that weaves psychological sources and guidance on critical topics in adolescent mental health into Judaic studies curricula.

 

 

 

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Bracha Teigman, who is pursuing an M.S. in Taxation from the Sy Syms School of Business, will implement the IRS’ Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) as a YU program and facilitate a tax subsection of Sy Syms’ Accounting Society to train undergraduate students to provide low-income residents with free tax preparation services.